Lake Regional Health System | Thrive | Winter 2018

4 | Winter 2018 C hances are you know someone with type 2 diabetes. It’s the most common form of diabetes — millions of Americans have it. But have you heard of prediabetes? “Prediabetes is extremely common — more than 1 out of 3 American adults has this condition,” says Kristi Brown, R.N., MSN, CDE, a certified diabetes educator at Lake Regional Health System. “Yet many people with prediabetes don’t understand what it is or what actions they should take to protect their health.” Here are three things you need to know about prediabetes: 1 It isn’t the same as diabetes — yet. Prediabetes is a serious warning that type 2 diabetes is on its way. If you’re told you have prediabetes, it means your blood sugar (glucose) level is higher than normal but not quite high enough to be type 2 diabetes. But if your glucose level continues to go up — and you don’t take steps to bring it down — you’ll probably develop full- blown diabetes. DIABETES CARE must-know facts 2 You could have it but not know it. You can’t count on having symptoms of prediabetes to warn you of the condition because often there are none. The only way to know for sure is to have your blood sugar level mea- sured. Your doctor may recommend that you be tested for the condition if you’re 45 or older. Even if you’re younger than 45, your doctor might want you to get tested if you are overweight and have other risk factors, such as if you have a family history of diabetes; have high blood pressure; are not physically active; or are African American, Asian American or Hispanic/Latino. 3 Small steps can go a long way toward reversing it. And now the really good news: Prediabetes often can be turned around with lifestyle changes. Losing some weight (shedding even 7 percent of your body weight can help), exercising regularly, and eating less fat and calories can help prevent or delay type 2 diabetes. Sources: American Diabetes Association; National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases 3 PREDIABETES: