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Staying Healthy
Recommendation calls for earlier diabetes screening in people who are overweight
- By Kelly Bilodeau, Former Executive Editor, Harvard Women's Health Watch
Research we're watching
If your body mass index (BMI) — a measure of body fat based on both weight and height — is 25 or greater, you should be screened for prediabetes and diabetes every three years starting at age 35, instead of age 40, according to an updated recommendation from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. It is hoped that screening these people at a younger age will find more cases of prediabetes and diabetes sooner and help head off some of the worst effects of the disease. Some 13% of U.S. adults have diabetes, and another 34.5% have prediabetes, according to the CDC.
Many people with diabetes — some 21.4% — don’t know they have it. In 2017, diabetes was the seventh leading cause of death in the United States. Uncontrolled, it can lead to a range of serious health effects, including kidney failure, blindness, and cardiovascular and liver disease.
Typically, diabetes screening is done by measuring a blood sugar after an eight hour fast or getting a blood test for hemoglobin A1C (it can be done any time of the day). If you are at high risk for diabetes, your doctor may want to start screening you at an even younger age, says the recommendation.
If you are diagnosed with prediabetes, lifestyle changes — such as improving your diet, exercising, and losing weight — and certain medications might prevent or delay the development of diabetes.
Image: Mladen Zivkovic/Getty Images
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Living Well with Diabetes
Living Well with Diabetes helps you better understand and manage your diabetes. It includes detailed, updated information about medications and alternative treatments for diabetes, and a special section on weight-loss strategies. You’ll also learn the basics of how your body metabolizes sugar, how and when to monitor your blood sugar, and how to cope with both short- and long-term complications of the disease. Most importantly, you’ll see that it’s not just possible to live with diabetes — it’s possible to live well.
Featured Content
- Recognizing the symptoms
- Monitoring blood sugar
- Weight-loss strategies for diabetes
- Alternative treatments for diabetes
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