Are You at Risk of Diabetes? Exercise and Diet Can Help

Tuesday, December 31, 2002

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Doctors can determine if you are at increased risk of diabetes, which now affects 16 million Americans — more people than ever before, according to the January issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter.

Understanding your risks can be needed motivation to make changes in your lifestyle. Diabetes is not inevitable, even with a family history of the disease. Recent research shows that losing weight and increasing exercise can dramatically reduce the risk of diabetes.

Risk factors include:

Impaired fasting glucose: If the level of glucose in your blood after fasting measures between 110 and 125 mg/dL, you have impaired fasting glucose. It's above normal, but not quite at the level of diabetes. It means you are at high risk of diabetes.

Age: Your risk of type 2 diabetes increases as you get older, especially past age 40.

Weight: Eight out of 10 people with diabetes are overweight.

Family history: Your chance of developing diabetes is higher if you have a close relative, such as a parent or sibling, with diabetes.

Race: For reasons not yet clear, blacks, Hispanics and American Indians have high rates of diabetes.

Inactivity: The less physically active you are, the greater the risk of developing diabetes.

Carol Lammers
507-284-5005 (days)
507-284-2511 (evenings)
e-mail: newsbureau@mayo.edu

Mayo Clinic Health Letter is an eight-page, monthly newsletter of reliable, accurate and practical information on today's health and medical news. To subscribe, please call toll-free 800-333-9037, extension 9PR1.

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