What are the Signs of Prediabetes?

Only 14% of individuals with prediabetes are aware that they have it.

Only 6% of doctors correctly identified all of the signs of prediabetes.

The most-missed signs of prediabetes were Hispanic ethnicity and Asian race.

Other signs of prediabetes include having high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart disease, having a sedentary lifestyle (not being active for at least 150 minutes per week), having polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), and being African-American, Native American, or Pacific Islander.

Other signs of prediabetes include having a family history of Type 2 Diabetes.

But among all of the signs, the biggest one is being overweight. You’re much more likely to have prediabetes if your BMI (your body mass index) is above 30.

Just 11% of doctors knew that the best initial approach to managing prediabetes is to refer patients to a behavioral weight-loss program, which the American Diabetes Association recommends. These programs are based on research on the Diabetes Prevention Program, which provides education and support for weight loss and exercise over an entire year and has been shown to reduce participants’ development of Diabetes by 58 percent.

Do I Have Prediabetes Signs?

The only way to know for sure if you have prediabetes is to get a blood test to determine your A1C or fasting blood sugar. Still, there are many tests you can take online to check your risk and signs.

The following signs and symptoms from your history and lifestyle can affect your diabetes risk:

• Your family history of diabetes. Check for “signs” in your family tree by thinking about who in your direct family had Type 2 Diabetes.
• Whether you have ever been diagnosed with high blood pressure. That’s a strong sign of an unhealthy, prediabetic lifestyle.
• Your age (the older you get, the more likely you are to get a prediabetes).
• Your race/ethnicity.
• Whether you are physically active (being inactive contributes to signs of an unhealthy, prediabetic lifestyle).
• Whether you are a man or a woman, and, if you are a woman, whether you have been diagnosed with gestational diabetes.
• Your height and weight, used to calculate your body mass index (BMI) (being overweight contributes greatly to prediabetes signs as it signifies an unhealthy, prediabetic lifestyle.).