More than 6 million Americans have diabetes – and don't know it. A simple blood test for blood glucose and a pencil-and-paper checklist can determine if you are one of those at risk.
A national survey conducted by the American Diabetes Association reveals that seven out of ten Americans are not aware of their blood glucose level (also called blood sugar level). This is critical information for determining whether or not you have diabetes or a condition called prediabetes.
Nearly 60 percent of people know their blood pressure levels – also key information for maintaining health vigilance. Yet most people have no idea what their blood glucose level is or how to measure it.
Diabetes Risk
To help people better recognize their own risk for type 2 diabetes, the American Diabetes Association and the federal government's Diabetes Detection Initiative provide a simple pencil-and-paper diabetes risk test. Among the primary risk factors for type 2 diabetes are being overweight, sedentary, over the age of 45, and having a family history of diabetes. African Americans, Latinos, and Native Americans are at an increased risk, as are women with a history of diabetes during pregnancy or those who have had babies weighing more than nine pounds at birth.
While people with diabetes can show symptoms, such as frequent urination, blurred vision, and excessive thirst, most people diagnosed with type 2 diabetes do not show these obvious warning signs at the time that they develop the disease.
Sixth Leading Cause of Death
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is committed in the fight against diabetes, which has a total economic cost of $174 billion a year and is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.
For more information, contact the Department of Health and Human Services, National Diabetes Education Program. To get a copy of the diabetes risk test or to get diabetes-related information (in English or Spanish), call (800) DIABETES (800-342-2383); or take the online test. |
