I have been reading the report of the most recent National Diabetes Fact Sheet, the assessment made jointly by the major national diabetes associations in the U.
S.
, the U.
K.
, and Canada.
It is already out of date and the statistics made available until 2007 make for scary reading.
So I'm addressing this post as an alert to the 57 million Americans and the more than 2 million Canadians who are estimated to be part of a special population group in North America, mentioned in that report.
Some of them already know, many of them don't.
But they may face a very difficult future that, in some cases, will dominate their lives and be responsible for a variety of serious and debilitating health conditions that can ultimately have life threatening consequences.
Pre-Diabetes What they share in common is the condition called pre-diabetes, not yet the full form of the very serious disease of diabetes but one that can lead to Type-2 diabetes and its complications.
And the pre-diabetes condition does itself increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
Prediabetes is recognized to be a growing health problem worldwide and unless it can be brought under control the cost of diabetes to national and the healthcare budgets is overwhelming.
I would rather not dwell on the negative aspects related to the prediabetes and diabetes but I am a diabetic myself and as such I am aware of the grim statistics that most diabetics soon become accustomed to hearing.
For instance, here is an example from the Canadian Diabetes Association:

Diabetes: In addition to being a chronic, incurable disease, diabetes dramatically increases the risk of severe health complications such as heart attack, stroke, kidney failure, limb amputation and blindness.
A leading cause of death by disease, Canadian adults with diabetes are twice as likely to die prematurely, compared to persons without diabetes.

A general alert So this is an alert to the many unsuspecting persons with prediabetes, unsuspecting because there are no associated symptoms in the early stages that draw attention to it.
But check your weight and your Body Mass Index value An early clue is weight, if you are obviously much overweight then you are a prime candidate.
Using the accepted values established by the Body Mass Index, an index rating above 25 is considered overweight and above 30 is considered obese.
The Body Mass Index, also referred to as the BMI, is a chart used by medical practitioners in determining a patient's weight in relationship to normally acceptable weight ranges of healthy people.
To find out where you fit on the BMI chart, click the reference below in the entry after the author's name, it will take you to the BMI Index with the simple instruction to find the value, no calculations needed.
If overweight, why not see a doctor? The doctor will probably prescribe a simple blood test that can establish your category regarding diabetes or prediabetes.
Prediabetes is defined by above normal blood glucose levels For many people, the discovery of being diabetic often occurs after a regular visit to the doctor.
That was the way I found out, when I went to the doctor's office for a routine check up.
I was advised to my surprise after getting the results of a blood test taken at the nearby clinic.
I had no symptoms or any indications of illness From that point on, many years ago, life has always been about normal blood glucose levels and the attempt to get mine into an acceptable range that will minimize the harmful affects that I know can be the result.
I wish I had received then, some early warning and a chance to change things, just as this article is meant to act as an early warning, to alert the unsuspecting to the possibilities.
So what hope is there for the millions categorized as being in the prediabetes stage? Definitely the development of Type-2 can be arrested.
According to the Canadian Diabetes Association, studies have shown that more than half of prediabetes cases can be delayed with the adoption of changes to lifestyle that include moderate weight loss and regular exercise.
And perhaps with the addition of medication if your doctor deems it to be necessary in order to get your blood sugars under control.
So it is worth making every effort before things deteriorate, that's a fact, you can take it from me, and from my fellow diabetics whose comments, often of anguish and distress, I read posted on the diabetes forum I follow.
If you are Prediabetic it's time to make the right moves! Exercise moves and weight loss if necessary! Persons with diabetic conditions of all types should be under the care of a doctor Without seeing your doctor and having a blood test you are unlikely to know your blood glucose levels but for general information I will post them here anyway: A fasting plasma glucose (FPG) level of 110 to 125 mg/dL (6.
1 to 6.
9 mmol/L) is considered as being in the prediabetic to diabetic range.
Fasting is usually defined as the overnight period of about 12 hours after the previous evening meal and before eating or drinking anything other than water, before breakfast in other words.
So this critical blood test is usually taken by a laboratory technician early in the morning.
In addition to the clinical blood test to measure blood glucose levels, there is also a different test that is used if the diabetic condition is suspected.
A test often ordered by the doctor is called the Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT).
It may be used when an individual's FPG levels are between 101 and 108 mg/dL (5.
6 and 6.
0 mmol/L) and when there are additional known risk factors for diabetes present, see list of some below.
The OGTT involves drinking a liquid containing a specific amount of glucose after an initial blood test.
Additional periodic blood tests are then taken and measured at 30-minute intervals for about 3 hours and in this way the ability of the body's system to cope with the glucose load can be compared with that of a non-diabetic person.
Risk Factors In addition to being overweight, inactive and of an age over 45 years, there are several known risk factors for type 2 diabetes, a rather lengthy list that include:

• a family history of diabetes
• being a member of a high risk population, namely indigenous American Indian, African-American, Hispanic, Asian-American or of the Pacific Islands
• an already existing complications typical of diabetes such as eye, nerve or kidney problems, high blood pressure or heart disease
• For women, a history of gestational diabetes or having given birth to a baby of over 9 pounds (4.
  1 kilograms) or polycystic ovary syndrome