IS DIABETES IN YOUR FUTURE?

By Kristi Sharp

SWUPHD HEALTH EDUCATOR

You visit your doctor for an annual physical exam, give a few vials of blood and wait for the results. You then have a follow-up appointment or maybe a call or message through an app to get notified of your results. Whichever option reflects your experience, hearing that your blood sugar is within the “prediabetic range” would likely catch you off-guard. You might immediately recall a loved one, friend, or coworker who has diabetes and their daily challenges and limitations that come with this life-altering chronic disease. What would this mean for you?

At this point you have two choices. You could resign yourself to the belief that there's nothing you can do but wait it out until you develop full type 2 diabetes. Or, you can empower yourself to ask questions and do the research to discover that prediabetes is reversible. You see, the best healthcare plan is about you taking personal responsibility instead of being passive or relying on someone or something else to fix you. If a chronic disease like diabetes can be prevented, postponed, and even reversed during the prediabetes stage if lifestyle changes are made, who wouldn't at least try?

WHAT IS PREDIABETES? You are considered prediabetic when your blood sugar is elevated but not high enough for a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs when the body’s ability to regulate sugar (glucose) malfunctions, resulting in too much sugar in the bloodstream. If diet and exercise aren't enough to manage diabetic symptoms, medication or insulin therapy may be required. Diabetes is among the top ten causes of death for Southwest Utah residents.

Unlike type 2 diabetes, prediabetes has no symptoms. The most common way to find out if you are prediabetic is with an A1C test. This test is extremely accurate as it is able to measure what your blood glucose level has been over the past three months as a percentage:

BELOW 5.7% = NORMAL 5.7% - 6.4% = PREDIABETES 6.5 & UP = TYPE 2 DIABETES

People who are prediabetic have a 50% chance of developing type 2 diabetes within 5 to10 years. As the saying goes, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”. A1C tests are typically part of your annual blood work and

most insurances cover the cost without your deductible having to be met because they know it’s much cheaper to prevent diabetes than treat it.

WHO GETS PREDIABETES? According to the Utah Department of Health, about one-third of us are prediabetic but nearly 90% of those don’t know it! Anyone could become prediabetic, but there are factors that increase your risk, such as age, gender, genetics, family history, having had gestational diabetes, and various lifestyle practices. Some of these are out of your control, of course, but what actually makes the biggest difference are lifestyle practices, which are in your hands to change. Here’s some examples:

SMOKING: Tobacco use increases your risk for chronic diseases, including diabetes. If you would like help quitting visit waytoquit.org.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITY: 150 minutes of physical activity weekly is the recommendation. Doing simple things like gardening, housework, taking a walk, playing with children, and going on a bike ride all count as activity. Let's be honest, you are most likely doing some of these activities anyway. 15 minutes here and there throughout the day can add up surprisingly fast. Don’t get overwhelmed; start slow and easy until you reach your goal. Just get moving! DIET: The foods and beverages you consume have a big impact on your health. Increasing your vegetable intake and reducing sugar-sweetened beverages and sodium is a great place to start. You can still enjoy your food; moderation is really the key here. Visit myplate.gov for simple healthy tips.

YOUR WEIGHT: It's important to maintain a weight appropriate for your height, which can be generally measured by BMI (body mass index). Losing just 5% of your body weight can significantly decrease your risk of prediabetes.Visit DoIHavePrediabetes.org for more information.

WHAT CAN YOU DO RIGHT NOW?

Remember, you can reverse prediabetes and prevent getting type 2 diabetes with simple improvements to your lifestyle. First, you need to know if you have prediabetes:

1.Take this one minute prediabetes risk test by scanning this QR code or visiting swuhealth.org/ diabetes

2.Make an appointment with your healthcare provider to get an A1C test and know your numbers (the health department also offers them for a small fee, visit swuhealth.org/screening-and-lab-services).

3.If you can confirm that you have prediabetes, get more information and support by joining a lifestyle change program. Here’s some starting points: • doihaveprediabetes.org • livingwell.utah.gov • swuhealth.org/diabetes