Preventing Diabetes
Decrease Your Risk For Diabetes
WHAT IS PREDIABETES?
Prediabetes is a serious health condition where blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough yet to be diagnosed as type 2 diabetes. In 2021, 97.6 million adults aged 18 years or older – more than 1 in 3 people – had prediabetes. Of those with prediabetes, approximately 80% don’t know they have it.
Prediabetes puts you at increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.
The good news is that if you have prediabetes, lifestyle changes may prevent or delay type 2 diabetes and other serious health problems.
Watch Mike’s story and how he reversed his prediabetes diagnosis.
WHAT ARE THE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS?
You can have prediabetes for years but have no clear symptoms, so it often goes undetected until serious health problems such as type 2 diabetes show up. It’s important to talk to your doctor about getting your blood sugar tested if you have any of the risk factors for prediabetes, which include:
- Being overweight
- Being 45 years or older
- Having a parent, brother, or sister with type 2 diabetes
- Being physically active less than 3 times a week
- Ever having gestational diabetes (diabetes during pregnancy) or giving birth to a baby who weighed more than 9 pounds
- Having polycystic ovary syndrome
Race and ethnicity are also a factor: African Americans, Hispanic/Latino Americans, American Indians, Pacific Islanders, and some Asian Americans are at higher risk.
MAKE A LIFESTYLE CHANGE
Reduce your risk by:
- Losing 5-7% of your bodyweight
- Increasing physical activity to 150 minutes per week
YMCA DIABETES PREVENTION PROGRAM
Offered by the YMCA of the Roses (formerly the YMCA of York and York County and the Lancaster Family YMCA). 25 small group sessions, facilitated by a certified health and wellness coach.
Click here for more information.
