Diet & Nutrition 4 MIN READ 2016 VIEWS June 2, 2022

How to Reverse Prediabetes? Is It Possible?

Written By HealthKart
Medically Reviewed By Dr. Aarti Nehra

how to reverse prediabetes
How to Know Whether You are Diabetic or Pre-Diabetic?
What to Do If You’re Diagnosed with Prediabetes?
Summary

Diabetes mellitus is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in middle-aged to elderly people. You may be diagnosed with diabetes if your Random Blood Sugar test reveals a level of 200 mg/dL. The Random Blood Sugar test measures your blood sugar and doesn’t require you to fast. On the other hand, a fasting blood glucose level of more than 126 mg/dL will also lead to a diagnosis of diabetes mellitus. Prediabetes is the term used when your blood sugar is found to be raised but not to diabetic levels. A fasting blood sugar level between 100 mg/dL and 125 mg/dL means you are prediabetic. While the blood sugar level in prediabetes is not high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes (fasting glucose more than 126 mg/dL) yet, do not let the ‘pre-’ fool you. The diagnosis of prediabetes needs to be taken extremely seriously as this is a critical stage determining your quality of life going forward and if left unchecked, it could progressively worsen the situation until you have a confirmed diagnosis of diabetes mellitus. So, how to reverse prediabetes? And is it even possible?  

How to  Know Whether You are  Diabetic or Pre-Diabetic?

Today, there are definite diagnostic criteria based on your fasting blood sugar. Random Blood Sugar & HbA1C levels are used to diagnose you as a diabetic or a prediabetic. The table below shows the readings of a normal individual vs a diabetic and a prediabetic:

ResultA1C TestFasting Blood Sugar TestGlucose Tolerance TestRandom Blood Sugar Test
Diabetes6.5% or above126 mg/dL or above200 mg/dL or above200 mg/dL or above
Prediabetes5.7 – 6.4%100 – 125 mg/dL140 – 199 mg/dLN/A
NormalBelow 5.7%99 mg/dL or below140 mg/dL or belowN/A

There are a few warning signs that should raise your suspicions about not having your blood sugar in control:

  1. An urge to urinate; more than usual
  2. Feeling more thirsty than usual
  3. Blurriness of your vision
  4. Feeling hungry more frequently
  5. Getting tired easily
  6. Wounds are healing too slow

What to Do If You’re Diagnosed with Prediabetes?

If you’re wondering can prediabetes be reversed, the good news is that prediabetes is completely reversible if diagnosed early. You should think of prediabetes as a fork in the road to diabetes, wherein if you ignore it, you go straight to being a diabetic. But if you decide to buckle up and make a few well-informed diet and lifestyle changes, you could keep the doctors and the meds away forever.

However, the fact remains that the majority of people who are affected with prediabetes aren’t even aware of their condition as these are chronic conditions with no discernible signs or symptoms until it’s too late and your blood sugar levels are already in the diabetic range. Therefore, the only way to stay on top of this is to stay vigilant and get regular annual or bi-yearly check-ups at your nearest diagnostic center.

Staying aware and vigilant is the priority and you should ask your doctor to get you in touch with certified diabetes educators who will guide you on how to reverse prediabetes naturally and give you valuable diet and lifestyle modifications. Here are the tried and tested ways that are answers to the question – “how to reverse prediabetes?”

  1. Changing Your Diet 

Starting with low-fat, low-calorie alternatives is the best way to commence. You should eat foods low in added sugars, avoid trans fat, saturated fat, and processed foods. You can also start eating smaller portions but more frequent meals.

  1. Getting Adequate Sleep and Treating Sleep Apnea 

There have been numerous studies highlighting the many benefits of adequate sleep, good sleep cycles, and the problems that sleep apnea may cause. One such study claims higher blood sugar levels can be due to sleeping under 5 hours a night or more than 8 hours a night. Also, your blood sugar levels could improve when you receive continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment for 2 weeks for your sleep apnea.

  1. Exercising and Losing Excess Weight 

Exercising regularly can help with prediabetes reversal. Even if you have a desk job, getting up and moving around even once in an hour is better than sitting for long periods. 

Exercising also keeps your weight in check and prevents obesity. A study from the Journal of General Internal Medicine claimed that people who lost about 10% of their body weight had much lower risk of developing diabetes.

  1. Stop Smoking 

Many researchers believe that prolonged and repetitive 

exposure to nicotine can increase the risk of developing diabetes.

  1. Maintaining Hydration 

Drinking plenty of water not only helps flush all the toxins and harmful metabolites from your body but also improves your body’s functioning so as to reduce levels of sugar in your blood.

  1. Reducing Stress 

Stress makes the body release various hormones like adrenaline and cortisol and these contribute to improper usage of sugar by the body and therefore leading to higher sugar levels in blood due to not getting used up properly.

Summary

Prediabetes, if diagnosed early, is actually not such a bad thing as this is completely reversible with just a few lifestyle changes. But the stage of prediabetes may go unnoticed by most people because of the lack of obvious signs and symptoms in early stages. Therefore, to answer the question “how to reverse prediabetes?” it is important that you stay aware and vigilant about your health and keep getting regular check-ups at your nearest diagnostic center.

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