Health & Wellness: How to Prevent Diabetes

About Us

Careers

Site Map

Health Care Services

Hospitals & Facilities

Health Information

Find a Doctor

Why Choose Baptist

How to Prevent Diabetes

Daily Bread

Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children.
Ephesians 5:1

Pre-diabetes condition often precedes diabetes

Before people develop type 2 diabetes, they almost always have "pre-diabetes" – blood glucose levels that are higher than normal but not yet high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes.

Take charge of your health
The recently completed Diabetes Prevention Program study showed that people with pre-diabetes can prevent the development of type 2 diabetes by making changes in their diet and increasing their level of physical activity.

Health care providers recommend:
At least 30 minutes a day of moderate physical activity, coupled with a 5-10 percent reduction in body weight. This combination produced a 58 percent reduction in diabetes, according to the study. Eating a balanced diet, paying close attention to the number of carbohydrates consumed per day. Patients should also limit saturated fats, because people with diabetes have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. Finding ways to reduce stress, because stress can elevate blood sugar levels.

If you have pre-diabetes, you can and should do something about it, said Charlotte Cavin, RN, BSN, CDE, manager of diabetes education at Baptist Rehabilitation-Germantown. Preventing diabetes is important because of the many serious complications diabetes can cause – stroke, heart attack, blindness, kidney disease and limb amputation are among them.

“People should be proactive,” Cavin said. “If pre-diabetes is caught, you’re really a step ahead of everything.”

Visit your physician
People with pre-diabetes don't often have symptoms. Pre-diabetes and diabetes are diagnosed by a blood glucose (sugar) test. Glucose tests may be given after a patient has fasted overnight or two hours after consuming a meal. Patients with a fasting glucose level of 100-125 or an after-meal blood glucose level of 140-199 are considered to have pre-diabetes. A fasting level of 126 or higher or a random blood glucose of 200 or more may indicate diabetes. A fasting level of less than 100 is considered normal.

If you believe you are at risk of developing pre-diabetes, you should be tested before and after a meal containing a large amount of carbohydrates.

Risk factors include:

Family history of diabetes
Overweight
Being older than 45
History of polycystic ovary syndrome
Having a baby that weighs more than nine pounds at birth

If you are diagnosed with pre-diabetes, you and your physician can work together to chart a plan so you can prevent diabetes.

Educate yourself
Many hospitals and health care organizations in the U.S. have programs for pre-diabetes patients. Baptist Rehabilitation-Germantown has a pre-diabetes program that is funded by a Tennessee Project Diabetes grant. Participants must be diagnosed with pre-diabetes and referred by a physician.

It is a three-month program that meets for one hour on Tuesday and Thursday nights. Patients who enroll in the program are first assessed by a nurse. Lab work is performed at the beginning and end of the program to determine progress. The Tuesday night class focuses on nutrition and healthy living. The Thursday class focuses on exercise.

Even if your blood glucose levels are normal, you should incorporate these healthy habits into your life. Studies have shown that a balanced diet, regular exercise and reduced stress levels can prevent cardiovascular disease, cancer and other potentially devastating health conditions.

Published: March 27, 2008
Source: Charlotte Cavin, RN, BSN, CDE, manager of diabetes education at Baptist Rehabilitation-Germantown
Writer: Elizabeth Todd Bartholomew, MA, APR

Top of Page