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We’ve talked a lot in this blog about the effects diabetes can have on your vision and hearing. At your last physical, your doctor said you’re not diabetic, but you are prediabetic. But what, exactly, does being prediabetic mean?
Diabetes is a group of metabolic diseases where the body’s pancreas does not produce enough insulin or does not properly respond to the insulin it produces, resulting in high blood sugar levels. This is a serious and chronic condition affecting more than 29 million Americans.
Type 1 diabetes is when your body doesn’t produce insulin. Type 2 diabetes is when your body either doesn’t respond well to insulin or your body doesn’t make enough insulin.
Prediabetes is when your blood sugar level is higher than normal, but it’s not high enough to be type 2 diabetes. The prediabetes blood sugar range is 100-125 milligrams per deciliter. The prediabetes A1C range – which averages your blood sugar over two to three months – is 5.7 percent to 6.4 percent.
If your blood sugar level when you haven’t eaten is 126 milligrams per deciliter or more during two separate tests, you have type 2 diabetes. An A1C level of 6.5 percent or higher is an indication of the same.
While one out of every three American adults is prediabetic, 90 percent don’t know they are. The problem is, people usually don’t have any signs or symptoms of prediabetes. Therefore, it’s important to have your doctor check your blood sugar levels regularly, such as at your annual physical.
Not only can this condition lead to diabetes, but it can also cause damage to the heart, blood vessels, eyes, and kidneys. In fact, by the time many it progresses to diabetes, this damage has already started. Recent studies showed diabetic retinopathy changes were present in nearly 8 percent of prediabetic patients even before they developed type 2 diabetes.
You are likelier to have prediabetes if you:
Just because you have prediabetes doesn’t mean you’ll become diabetic. Healthy lifestyle changes – such as losing weight, exercising, and adapting a healthy diet – can greatly lower your risk of developing diabetes.
If you are prediabetic, you can come to CEENTA for a vision screening. CEENTA has a number of doctors skilled in treating the unique needs of diabetic and prediabetic patients. We’ll help focus on your eyes so you can focus on lowering your risk of developing full diabetes.
This blog is for informational purposes only. Call 704-295-3000. You can also schedule an appointment online or through myCEENTAchart.
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