Prevent and treat prediabetes and diabetes with weight loss.
Carrying excess weight is a risk factor for prediabetes which is a growing health problem. Having prediabetes means your blood glucose (sugar) levels are higher than normal—but not high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes. Prediabetes can lead to heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes, the most common form of diabetes. Prediabetes is a growing threat to health and longevity, and with early interventions can be reversed.
Here’s a statistical pearl that many people don’t know: a Hgb A1C level that indicates diabetes is a LATE sign. People often have diabetes for 10 YEARS on average before Hgb A1C will indicate “diabetic” levels. Prediabetes is the evidence of insulin resistance as well as increasing abdominal fat stores. These are hallmarks of metabolic syndrome and impending type 2 diabetes.
You can get type 2 diabetes at any age, but you are at higher risk if you are older, overweight, have a family history of diabetes, are not physically active, or are a woman who had gestational diabetes (diabetes that occurred during pregnancy).
Who is at Risk for Prediabetes and Type 2 Diabetes?
- You are overweight.
- You are 45 years of age or older.
- Your parent or sibling has type 2 diabetes.
- You are physically active fewer than 3 times per week.
- You ever gave birth to a baby that weighed more than 9 pounds.
- You ever had diabetes while pregnant (gestational diabetes).
Race and ethnicity also affect your risk. African Americans, Hispanic/Latino Americans, American Indians, Pacific Islanders, and some Asian Americans are at particularly high risk for type 2 diabetes.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) the following are the percentage of people in the United States with diagnosed diabetes from 2017 to 2020:
- Non-Hispanic Blacks – 12.7%
- Hispanics – 11.1%
- Non-Hispanic Asians – 11.3%
- Non-Hispanic Whites – 11.0%
Take the prediabetes risk test here: Take the Test – Prediabetes | Diabetes | CDC
This is a great tool to assess your risk for prediabetes but is not diagnostic. At Omni Health NP we run the blood tests necessary to determine if you are, in fact, prediabetic. It is important to know if you’re prediabetic because people with full blown diabetes often have the disease 10 years on average before standard tests can detect it.
The data is clear. Diet, exercise, and even pharmacology as a part of a weight loss strategy is key to reversing prediabetes and preventing type 2 diabetes. Every little step in the right direction matters, so let’s get started!
At Omni Health we are all about early intervention. There are healthcare entities who have an interest in keeping people sick and waiting until they are sick to provide affordable access to life changing medications. Omni Health NP wants to change that. We aim to provide access to the medications shown to reduce HgA1C and improve cardiovascular health while locating resources to support the lifestyle changes you need to take control of your health.
