Borderline diabetes is a medical term that experts use to describe a health condition also known as prediabetes.
This health condition is characterized by blood sugar levels that are abnormal (higher than normal levels), but at the same time, these levels are not so drastic for the patient to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
So, prediabetes is just another risk factor for this complicated disease. According to some statistics, between 10 and 25% of people suffering from prediabetes will actually experience the emergence of type 2 diabetes in less than five years.
What is good to know is that prediabetes often occurs together with some other risk factors. For instance, prediabetes has been linked to hypertension, obesity, low levels of good cholesterol, and vice versa – high levels of bad cholesterol.
So, if these so-called risk factors occur at once in some individuals, there is a great chance that they will develop type 2 diabetes. In addition, they are at risk of stroke and heart disease too.
When experts discuss prediabetes, they usually use a few other medical terms like:
- Disabled fasting glucose
- Disabled glucose tolerance
- Resistance to insulin.
Borderline Diabetes: Symptoms
Although diabetes and prediabetes are different, both health conditions don’t come with obvious symptoms. So, prediabetes can remain hidden until the sufferer realizes that they have type 2 diabetes. Of course, sometimes heart attacks can point out that there is a problem like this.
There are many people who may witness symptoms because of the constant high levels of blood sugar. Frequent urination and unexplained urge to drink water from time to time are some of the symptoms of type 2 diabetes.
However, prediabetes usually cannot be found and in order to determine whether you have such a problem, you must perform some testing. This testing is performed when people are exposed to some risk factors.
Borderline Diabetes: Risk Factors and Causes
There are many risk factors associated with borderline diabetes. The three most common risk factors are obesity/being overweight, inherited problems, and physical inactivity. Of course, there are a few other risk factors like:
- Smoking
- Constant stress
- Alcohol consumption.
In addition, beverages packed with sugar can also affect the chances of developing prediabetes. A scientific study conducted not a while ago has confirmed that individuals who consume soft drinks loaded with sugar on a regular basis (at least one can of soda per day) have significantly more chances of developing prediabetes and type 2 diabetes.
In addition, individuals who drink sugar-packed drinks at this rate or even more have at least a 25% higher risk of witnessing the emergence of these diseases.
What is interesting is that Asians and young adults are more vulnerable than other categories of people. In addition, taking high amounts of sugar through food and drinks can also lead to obesity, gout, and heart disease.
People should also know that despite the high amount of calories and sugar that soda drinks contain they won’t suppress their appetite and they won’t eat less food between main meals. Finally, one regular can of soda (20 ounces) contains up to 18 teaspoons of sugar.
Physical Inactivity Can Make The Situation Worse
As we have previously mentioned, there are more risk factors that are worth mentioning. Some of them include experiencing high blood sugar levels in childhood and the emergence of PCOS – polycystic ovary syndrome.
Borderline Diabetes: Diagnosis
Borderline diabetes is usually diagnosed with the help of a standard glucose tolerance test or a simple blood draw. In some cases, random blood sugar levels or fasting can work, and in other cases, healthcare professionals use a simple A1C test.
This is not a direct test, but it is very precise when it comes to assessing the average level of blood sugar in the last 2-3 months.
It turns out that the A1C test is among the most reliable tests for discovering diabetes.
When you take the A1C test, you don’t have to stop eating certain foods or change your diet which is not the case with fasting blood sugar tests. In the end, the blood samples I obtained from a vein located in the arm.
Borderline diabetes is diagnosed in cases where Healthline is indicated by an A1C test. These high levels are between 5.7 and 6.7 %.
Non-fasting levels of blood sugar between 140 and 199 mg per dL suggest the presence of prediabetes condition and the same goes if the range is between 100 and 125 mg/dL in fasting blood sugar levels.
According to the WHO (Medical News Today), the A1C test is definitely the most reliable method to determine the presence of diabetes, even though the A1C test is not found in every country in the world. But, this test is not precise for certain categories of people, like anemic people.
In any case, WHO advises the use of the A1C test for a few reasons:
- Eliminates the need for fasting or to consume any dietary supplements
- Eliminates the issue of blood sugar inconsistency on a daily basis. This test simply shows the average blood sugar levels in the last 60-90 days.
The US Department of Health and Human Services as well as the ADA (American Diabetes Association) highly recommend the A1C test for specific categories of people.
Any individual who is overweight and at least 45 years old should be tested especially if they have on or a few of the factors that increase the risk of prediabetes.
- Hypertension
- Very low levels of good cholesterol
- Physical inactivity for a long time
- First signs of insulin resistance
- High levels of blood fat
- A family history of diabetes
- Asian American, African American, Native American, Hispanic American, or Pacific Islander ethnic/racial background
- A relative (first degree) suffering from diabetes
- Had gestational diabetes.
Some other factors that increase the risk of prediabetes mentioned here can also lead to blood glucose level tests.
Borderline Diabetes: Treatments
The good news is that in many prediabetes is actually a reversible issue. Proper diet and regular exercise are usually sufficient to reverse this health issue. In other words, people diagnosed with prediabetes must introduce some lifestyle changes. In some cases, physicians may recommend treatments based on drugs like metformin.
So, lifestyle changes are crucial for the prevention of advancement of this health issue and the emergence of type 2 diabetes. If you implement these changes in your life, the chances of experiencing this problem will be very low.
If you are looking for a simple example of suitable changes, adding at least 150 minutes of exercise every week and gradual weight loss of about 5-7% should be enough.
When it comes to the diet, you can lower the intake of foods packed with sugar. The nutrition should include unprocessed carbs high in fiber, eating more veggies and fruits, and reducing the intake of processed meat and saturated fat intake. It is good to know that this kind of diet will also help you protect your heart.
A scientific study revealed a few months ago, called the Healthline, has shown that individuals who were able to lose 7% of their weight and kept this loss experienced a few other important changes.
- They have reduced the chances of developing type 2 diabetes by almost 60%
- The change brought the same health benefit to all ethnic groups and both men and women
- The elderly experienced even more benefits than young adults thanks to this change
- People over the age of 60 reduced the chances of developing diabetes by 70%.
The participants were divided into two groups. The first one followed expert advice about exercise, diet, and behavior changes and implemented these recommendations into their lives. The other group kept their ordinary lifestyle making no changes.
The first group of people was able to cut the risk of developing diabetes and losing weight by:
- Consuming fewer calories and less fat
- Spending two and a half hours a week on exercise.
It is worth mentioning that both exercise and diet remain to be important issues even in people who have already developed diabetes.
Borderline Diabetes: Monitoring
Besides the need to introduce some changes in your lifestyle, healthcare professionals might also spend some time explaining what diabetes is and how it can be handled.
Doctors may discuss the risk factors, treatment options, and effects on other health issues.
Handling prediabetes includes constant observation of the aforementioned risk factors and getting additional blood sugar level testing.
In case people manage to implement these lifestyle changes, blood sugar level tests in the near future may indicate that this serious health condition is reversed.