Insulin Resistance and Pre-Diabetes

The rising incidence of diabetes in the United States is the result of a dramatic increase in obesity, as well as the aging population. The latest data shows that in addition to the estimated 17 million Americans who have diabetes, at least another 20.8 million have “pre-diabetes.”

What is Pre-Diabetes?

People with pre-diabetes have blood glucose levels that are higher than normal but not high enough for a diagnosis of diabetes. This condition raises the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.

Pre-diabetes is also called impaired fasting glucose (IFG) or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT), depending on the test used to diagnose it. Some people have both IFG and IGT.

• IFG is a condition in which the blood glucose level is high (100 to 125 mg/dL) after an overnight fast, but is not high enough to be classified as diabetes. (The former definition of IFG was 110 mg/dL to 125 mg/dL.)
• IGT is a condition in which the blood glucose level is high (140 to 199 mg/dL) after a 2-hour oral glucose tolerance test, but is not high enough to be classified as diabetes.

Pre-diabetes is becoming more common in the United States, according to new estimates provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. About 40 percent of U.S. adults ages 40 to 74—or 41 million people—had pre-diabetes in 2000. New data suggest that at least 54 million U.S. adults had pre-diabetes in 2002. Many people with pre-diabetes go on to develop type 2 diabetes within 10 years.

The good news is that if you have pre-diabetes, you can do a lot to prevent or delay diabetes. Studies have clearly shown that you can lower your risk of developing diabetes by losing 5 to 7 percent of your body weight through diet and increased physical activity. A major study of more than 3,000 people with IGT, a form of pre-diabetes, found that diet and exercise resulting in a 5 to 7 percent weight loss—about 10 to 14 pounds in a person who weighs 200 pounds—lowered the incidence of type 2 diabetes by nearly 60 percent. Study participants lost weight by cutting fat and calories in their diet and by exercising (most chose walking) at least 30 minutes a day, 5 days a week.

What is Insulin Resistance?

Recent scientific research has clearly identified that pre-diabetes is caused by “insulin resistance.” Insulin resistance is a silent condition that occurs when your body’s cells do not have enough receptor sights and cannot effectively utilize blood glucose (sugar). A person may be insulin resistant for many years before they become pre-diabetic. Insulin resistance usually has no symptoms. However, if you have a severe form of insulin resistance, you may get dark patches of skin on your body, they are often located on the back of the neck, elbows, knuckles, armpits and knees. Insulin resistance increases the likelihood of developing diabetes and heart disease and if left untreated insulin resistance almost always leads to pre-diabetes and ultimately diabetes.

If you have insulin resistance, your muscle fat and liver cells do not use insulin (a hormone secreted by the pancreas that regulates the level of glucose (sugar) in the blood) properly. The pancreas works overtime to overcome the insulin resistance. Eventually, the pancreas tires and insulin production decreases. As a result excess glucose (sugar) builds up in the bloodstream. People who have blood glucose levels that are higher than normal but not high enough to be diagnosed with diabetes have pre-diabetes.

If you are over 45 years of age and overweight you should have your blood glucose checked by a medical professional to detect if you have pre-diabetes or diabetes. If you are younger than 45 years old and have any of the following risk factors you will also want to have your blood glucose checked.
Risk Factors: Gave birth to a child that weighed over 9lbs. or gestational diabetes; overweight; high blood pressure; low HDL cholesterol and high triglycerides; minority group (African American, American Indian, Hispanic, Latino, or Asian American) and or family history of diabetes.
People with insulin resistance and pre-diabetes can do many things to help prevent developing diabetes.
Recent studies have proven that by losing weight and being more physically active (exercising 20-30 minutes per day) can help reduce the risk for developing diabetes by 58 percent.

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