| Diabetes; Are You at Risk? |
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If you have diabetes, you know that it can be a major inconvenience. Most people with diabetes have to take pills or shots to control their blood sugar. But did you know that having diabetes can put you at a higher risk for heart attack and stroke? It also increases your risk for developing kidney failure and blindness. Finally, it can cause nerve damage and decrease blood circulation in the legs. Nerve and circulation problems can lead to serious infections and possible amputation. This may all sound rather gloomy, but it is true and it is meant to get your attention. Diabetes is becoming a serious epidemic in the U.S. It is estimated that 7% of the U.S. population currently has diabetes. (1) This number is rising. In fact, it is estimated that for people born in the year 2000, the lifetime risk of developing diabetes is 33% for males and 39% for females.(1) Thankfully, the American College of Endocrinology (ACE), the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) and the American Diabetes Association (ADA) have looked at all of the data out there and have identified the safest, most effective diabetes therapies. They have compiled this knowledge into guidelines to help doctors diagnose and treat diabetes more effectively. As part of these guidelines, they have identified certain factors that put us at a higher risk for developing diabetes. Let’s take a look at them now.
Table 1: Risk Factors for Developing Diabetes
Family history of diabetes Heart disease Overweight or obese Lack of physical activity Latino Hispanic. Non-Hispanic black. Asian American. Native American or Pacific Islander ethnicity Impaired glucose tolerance or impaired fasting glucose (as determined by your doctor) High blood pressure Increased triglycerides, decreased HDL cholesterol or both (from your blood cholesterol panel) History of gestational diabetes (diabetes that developed during pregnancy) History of delivering an infanct with a birth weight of more than 9 pounds Polycystic ovary syndrome Pshychiatric illness
How Can I Decrease My Risk? Many of the risk factors above are beyond our control. For example, we cannot control our ethnicity or family history. We can, however, make appropriate lifestyle changes like eating right, being active and watching our weight. In coordination with your doctor, you should also work hard to keep other risk factors like blood cholesterol and blood pressure in check. If you have at least one of the risk factors mentioned above, and are 30 years of age or older, the ACE/AACE guidelines recommend getting screened every year for diabetes. The ADA guidelines differ a little on this in that their recommendations are not as strict. Instead of yearly screenings, they recommend screenings every 3 years, if you meet certain criteria. Many experts believe it is in one’s best interest to follow the more stringent guidelines, therefore, many consider yearly screenings to be better. The Bottom Line Unfortunately, we don’t always know how the conditions listed above put us at higher risk, we just know that when they are present, we are at a higher risk for diabetes. Remember, diabetes is not a disease that you ‘catch’. Rather, there is a combination of heredity, lifestyle, eating, and exercise habits that contribute to its development. By doing what we can to control the controllable risk factors listed above, we can significantly decrease our risk of developing diabetes.
Dr. Larson is a Clinical Infusion Pharmacist, author of Empowered Medicine; A Guide for Consumers and creator of www.empoweredmedicine.com. You can read more about her by visiting www.EmpoweredMedicine.com and clicking on the 'About Us' tab. EmpoweredMedicine.com is committed to providing evidence-based medical information.
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