Pre-Diabetes Could Be Equally Fatal

Pre- diabetes is a diabetes condition wherein the person affected possesses higher than the normal blood sugar levels but his condition is not severe enough to be declared as diabetes. This state of blood sugar level is also termed as impaired fasting glucose (IFG) or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT).

In case of IFG, blood sugar level is above normal sugar levels even after an overnight fasting. But, it is still below the danger level of diabetes. Whereas, IGT is a different state in which blood sugar level is higher than normal while a 2-hour glucose tolerance test is being conducted but it is also lesser than the danger level of diabetes.

Pre-diabetes patients have greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes. People who have anyhow developed this malady have enough chances of developing type 2 diabetes within 10 years if they don't try hard to shed 5 % to 7 % of their body weight. In order to do so patient must stick to a strict diet routine. A certain level of physical activity as per the need would also help reduce the weight.

Since, pre-diabetes has no clear symptom in it's early stages, everyone who is a little over weight should keep monitoring blood sugar levels. However, an extreme case of insulin resistance may result in dark patches on the skin, most often on back of patient's neck. This condition is termed as Acanthosis Nigricans.

For diagnosis of pre-diabetes the patient is required to undergo the same tests that one undergoes for diabetes such as fasting glucose and glucose tolerance. In case of lesser level of insulin resistance, blood tests may end up showing normal or high levels of blood glucose and higher insulin level at the same time.

US adults aged between 40 to 70 are badly stricken by this malady. A rough estimate indicates that almost 41 million people of this age group suffer from pre-diabetes.


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