Prediabetes: What Increases Your Risk

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What Increases Your Risk

The risk factors for prediabetes are similar to the risk factors for type 2 diabetes. Most people who get type 2 diabetes had prediabetes first.

Risk factors that you cannot control include:

• Family history. If you have a parent, brother, or sister who has type 2 diabetes, you have a greater chance of developing the disease.
• Age. The risk for getting prediabetes and type 2 diabetes increases with age. And the number of children being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes is increasing. Usually, children who get type 2 diabetes have a family history of the disease, are overweight, and are physically inactive.³
• Race and ethnicity. African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders are at higher risk for type 2 diabetes than whites.⁴
• History of gestational diabetes or having a baby weighing more than 9 lb (4 kg). Women who have had gestational diabetes or who have had a large baby are at higher risk for developing type 2 diabetes later in life.⁴
• Low birth weight. People who weighed less than 5.5 lb (2.5 kg) at birth are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes later in life.⁵

There are some things you can do to reduce your chances of getting prediabetes and diabetes:

• Lose weight. Your risk for prediabetes and type 2 diabetes increases as your weight (or body mass index, BMI) increases. Your risk also increases if most of your body fat is in your belly area . Reaching and staying at a healthy body weight can reduce your risk.
• Get more exercise. The less you exercise, the greater your risk of developing prediabetes and type 2 diabetes. People who do moderate exercise for at least 30 minutes on most or all days of the week have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes.⁶
• Eat foods that are good for you. Eating a lot of sugary foods, red meat, soft drinks, and fast food can increase your risk of getting prediabetes and type 2 diabetes. Eating whole grains, nuts, and vegetables can decrease your risk.⁷
• Get treatment if you have prediabetes. If your fasting blood sugar levels are in the range from 100 mg/dL to 125 mg/dL, you are at increased risk for developing type 2 diabetes.⁸
• Quit smoking. This change may reduce your chance of developing complications from diabetes.

Other conditions that put you at risk for prediabetes and type 2 diabetes—and that are also linked with obesity and a lack of physical activity—include:

• Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a hormone imbalance that interferes with normal ovulation.
• Metabolic syndrome, a group of abnormal physical findings related to the body's metabolism.

If you have prediabetes, you are more likely to get cardiovascular disease than someone with normal blood glucose levels.² By lowering your cholesterol to the recommended levels, not smoking, and keeping your blood pressure under 140/90 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg), you may reduce your risk of heart and large blood vessel disease.

If you are concerned about diabetes, you can take a test to determine your risk of getting the disease. If you are at risk, you can discuss with your doctor how to make healthy changes in your life. If you want, your doctor can refer you to health professionals who are trained to help you make your own easy-to-follow plan for eating and exercising. No matter how and when you start, it is important to remember that even small changes can lower your chances of getting diabetes.

Last updated:	August 12, 2008
Author:	Caroline Rea, RN, BS, MS
Reviewed By:	Caroline S. Rhoads, MD - Internal Medicine, Jennifer Hone, MD - Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism
Editors:	Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA, Pat Truman, MATC