are you at risk for diabetes?
Source: National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
If you’re over 45, ask your health care provider about testing for pre-diabetes or diabetes.
You should also ask about testing if you’re younger than 45, overweight, and have another risk factor, such as you:
- are 45 or older
- have a family history of diabetes
- are overweight
- have an inactive lifestyle (exercise less than three times a week)
- are a member of a high-risk ethnic population such as African American, Hispanic/Latino American, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian American or Pacific Islander
- have high blood pressure
- have a low HDL cholesterol level or a high triglyceride level
- have had diabetes that developed during pregnancy (gestational diabetes) or have given birth to a baby weighing more than nine pounds
- have polycystic ovary syndrome, a disorder that affects the female reproductive system
- have acanthosis nigricans (dark, thick skin near neck or armpits)
- have a history of disease of the blood vessels to the heart, brain or legs
- have had an impaired glucose reading in a previous test
Posted: September 2006