Gov't Says 41 Million Have Pre-Diabetes

[Guest guest]

Gov't

Says 41 Million Have Pre-Diabetes

April 29, 2004

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Millions more Americans

than previously thought have signs of what could later turn into diabetes,

the government says.

Doubling previous figures, the government

estimates that 41 million Americans have pre-diabetes -- blood sugar high

enough to dramatically increase their risk of getting the full-blown disease.

The figures released Wednesday are

significantly higher than previous estimates because doctors have changed the

criteria for diagnosing the condition after research showed they were missing

too many at-risk patients.

" These latest numbers show how urgent

the problem really is, " said Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy

, who was announcing the new estimates at a federal health meeting

Thursday in Baltimore.

" We need to help Americans take steps

to prevent diabetes or we will risk being overwhelmed by the health and

economic consequences of an ever-growing diabetes epidemic. "

The good news is that modest diet and

exercise can delay, if not prevent, the onset of diabetes in many

pre-diabetics.

But " most of these people have no

idea " they're at risk, said Dr. Francine Kaufman, past president of the

American Diabetes Association.

Some 18 million Americans have full-blown

diabetes, a leading cause of blindness, kidney failure, amputations and heart

disease that claims 180,000 U.S. lives a year.

Some people are born with it, but the vast majority have Type 2 diabetes, an illness that develops,

often in middle age, when their bodies lose the ability to turn blood sugar

into energy. Obesity, an increasing problem in the United States, is associated with diabetes.

The loss in ability to turn blood sugar into

energy is very gradual, and it can be measured by blood tests. Glucose levels

that are above normal but not yet in the diabetic range signal pre-diabetes

-- and a change in what one test considers normal prompted the government's

new increased estimates.

Doctors once thought blood sugar levels

below 110 milligrams per deciliter as measured by the " impaired fasting

glucose " test -- given before eating anything in the morning -- were

normal. But the American Diabetes Association in November changed the

definition of normal to below 100 milligrams -- meaning anyone with a fasting

glucose between 100 and 125 milligrams is now classified pre-diabetic.

That seems like a small change. But a lot of

people are in that 100 to 110 range, data that conclude

about 40 percent of people ages 40 to 74 are pre-diabetic, explained Dr.

Vinicor, diabetes chief for the Centers for

Disease Control and Prevention.

Changing the pre-diabetes cut-off

" isn't an arbitrary decision, " Vinicor

said. " It's based on emerging science from the last two to three

years, " that found the risk of glucose-spurred heart disease began

rising at lower levels than once thought.

Cut-offs for a second test -- where blood

sugar levels are measured two hours after a glucose-rich drink -- remain unchanged. Levels between 140 and 199 milligrams

are considered pre-diabetic in that test.

So who needs to seek one of these tests? The

ADA says:

Anyone

45 or older who is overweight should seek testing during the next

routine doctor visit.

Anyone

over 45 who are of normal weight should ask their doctor if testing is

appropriate.

Doctors

should consider testing younger people if they are overweight and have

another risk factor: a diabetic relative; bad cholesterol; high blood

pressure; diabetes during pregnancy or gave birth to a baby bigger than

9 pounds; or belong to a racial minority group.

Doctors typically repeat the test every

three years if results are normal, but may test people with multiple risk

factors more often.

If the test diagnoses pre-diabetes, there

are proven ways to lower the risk of full-blown illness, Vinicor

stressed, such as walking 30 minutes a day, five days a week, and losing 5

percent to 7 percent of body weight.

Copyright 2004 The

Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Hugs,

Deanna