Before there was diabetes there is pre-diabetes. Pre diabetes has been described as a condition where your blood sugars are elevated but not enough to qualify you as a diabetic.
Years before I was officially diagnosed with Diabetes I had Syndrome X and sleep apnea both lead to slow weight gain, slow increases in blood pressure and cholesterol levels. The key word here is slow.
In my humble and perverted way of thinking this is part of what makes Diabetes so diabolical-it sneaks up on you and before you know it BLAM you’ve got it. SLOWLY.
My lifestyle at the time consisted of sitting most of the day at a desk job working 10-14 hour days, eating poorly, not getting enough exercise, and slowly getting pre-diabetes. I was gaining weight and unbeknownst to me slowly starting to kill myself.
If I had a doc back then who knew what he was doing I would have had a fasting plasma glucose test (FPG). Normal fasting blood glucose is below 100 mg/dl. A person with pre-diabetes has a fasting blood glucose level between 100 and 125 mg/dl. If the blood glucose level rises to 126 mg/dl or above, a person has diabetes.
Once the cycle is started it is not that hard to stop if you stop it in time. Knowledge is the key. For me it started when I was about 45. I was Joe snackaholic and Chuckee couch potato. After a 12 hour day what better to do than crash and watch the tube with a couple of sodas and some chips.
I was a smoker and loved my adult beverages too which didn’t help.
Like just about anything, unless you know about it you are not likely to do anything. Being aware of the prevalence of the problem and the consequences of inaction are a necessary first step.
Studies show that an aggressive action plan at first onset of pre-diabetes can delay diabetes at the very worst and possibly sidestep the disease all together at the very best. Trust me that is what you want.
What is involved? EXERCISE AND WEIGHT LOSS are much easier to do in your 30’s and 40’s than later in life when it may be too late.
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