Wednesday, January 10, 2007

Diabetes Awareness Wake Up Call

When traveling on out-of-town business, its common to have the hotel front desk give you a wake-up call in the morning. You want to avoid the embarrassment and repercussions of being late for your business appointments.

Here is an important wake-up call for your life and the lives of the people you most care about.

If you want to avoid the life damaging effects of diabetes, take 3 minutes to read the remainder of this article right now.

The new buzz in the medical community calls it- "Pre-Diabetes". Today, roughly 41 million Americans have pre-diabetes which left undetected and untreated, progresses into full-blown diabetes.

The challenge with pre-diabetes is the fact that the condition doesn't like to reveal itself with noticeable symptoms. Because there are few, if any symptoms, most people will not bother having screening tests performed. With pre-diabetes, noticeable symptoms like frequent thirst and urination may not occur until the disease has progressed and is already causing considerable damage to your body. Most Type 2 diabetics don't have symptoms because the onset of diabetes is so slow.

Don't wait for "someday" to have your blood tested. Call your doctor today and make the appointment.

The goal with identifying pre-diabetes is to prevent the onset of diabetes from ever happening.

Your physician can determine if you have pre-diabetes with two common tests. The fasting plasma glucose test (FPG) and the oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). Both require an overnight fast.

The good news is that you can greatly improve your odds and likely prevent diabetes with early detection and proper care.

Don't wait 'til it hurts. Ask your doctor about diabetes and have your blood sugar checked several times a year.