Millions Have Prediabetes but Don’t Know it: CDCThursday, 21 Mar 2013
Only 11 percent of the estimated 79 million Americans who are at
risk for diabetes know they are at risk, federal health
officials reported Thursday.
The condition, known as prediabetes, describes
higher-than-normal blood sugar levels that put people in danger
of developing diabetes, according to the U.S. Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention.
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"We have a huge issue with the small number of people who know
they have it. It's up a bit from when we measured it last, but
it's still abysmally low," said report author Ann Albright,
director of the CDC's Division of Diabetes Translation.
"We need people to understand their risk and take action if they
are at risk for diabetes," Albright said. "We know how to
prevent type 2 diabetes, or at least delay it, so there are
things people can do, but the first step is knowing what your
risk is — to know if you have prediabetes."
Things that put people at risk for prediabetes include being
overweight or obese, being physically inactive and not eating a
healthy diet, Albright said. These people should see their
doctor and have their blood sugar levels checked, she said.
There is also a genetic component, Albright said, which is why
having a family history of diabetes is another risk factor.
"Your genetics loads the gun, then your lifestyle pulls the
trigger," she said.
According to the report, published in the Morbidity and
Mortality Weekly Report, the lack of awareness of prediabetes
was the same across the board, regardless of income, education,
health insurance or access to health care.
One expert found the numbers troubling.
"People don't know about prediabetes, they don't exercise, they
don't eat appropriate foods and we are going to have many more
diabetics in the near future than we have now," said Spyros
Mezitis, M.D., an endocrinologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New
York City.
The danger of prediabetes is that it can progress to full-blown
diabetes, with all the complications that condition entails,
including heart, kidney, circulation and vision problems.
Albright noted that 30 percent or more of those with prediabetes
will develop diabetes over the course of a decade.
The number of Americans with diabetes is already staggering.
According to the American Diabetes Association, 25.8 million
children and adults in the United States — 8.3 percent of the
population — have diabetes.
"The good news is we know there are things you can do to prevent
or delay the development of type 2 diabetes," Albright said.
"You can prevent or delay diabetes if you lose 5 percent to 7
percent of your body weight and get 150 minutes of physical
activity a week."
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Another expert said it starts with what you eat.
Eating a healthy diet that limits sugars and carbohydrates is
important, said Dr. Joel Zonszein, director of the Clinical
Diabetes Center at Montefiore Medical Center in New York City.
Exercise and diet can reduce the risk of diabetes by about 58
percent, he said, and "giving the drug metformin can reduce the
risk by 31 percent. Lifestyle changes, together with metformin,
which the American Diabetes Association recommends for
prediabetes, will be very effective."
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