What are the Signs of Diabetes?
- Frequent thirst
- Frequent urination
- Extreme tiredness
- Extreme hunger
- Unexplained weight loss
- Sores that are slow to heal
- Dry, itchy skin
- Loss of feeling or tingling in the feet
- Blurry eyesight
If you are experiencing any of the above symptoms, ask your doctor to test you for diabetes. Are you at risk of developing diabetes? Take this test to find out.
What is Pre-Diabetes?
Before people develop Type 2 diabetes, they almost always have "pre-diabetes" - blood glucose levels that are higher than normal but not yet high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes. There are 41 million people in the United States who have pre-diabetes. Research has also shown that if you take action to manage your blood glucose when you have pre-diabetes, you can delay or prevent Type 2 diabetes from developing.
Risk Factors:
Although no one knows for sure why some people develop Type 2 diabetes and some do not, there are common risk factors. Some include:
- Over age 40
- Being overweight, waist circumference 35 inches or greater for women; 40 inches or greater for men
- A close family member (parent or sibling) with diabetes
- Diabetes during pregnancy or giving birth to a baby weighing over nine pounds
- Being of African American, Hispanic/Latino, Asian American or Pacific Islander or Native American descent
- High blood pressure
- High triglyceride levels and low levels of HDL (the good cholesterol)
- Previous impaired glucose tolerance or impaired fasting glucose (both are now called pre-diabetes)
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