What Are the Treatments for Impaired Fasting Glucose?

According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), more than 57 million people have impaired fasting glucose, now described as prediabetes. Treatments for prediabetes are centered on healthy lifestyle changes to delay the onset of diabetes.

Prediabetes

• Prediabetes is diagnosed when a person's blood glucose levels are consistently above normal, yet don't exceed the threshold for diabetes diagnosis. The ADA suggests that people with prediabetes can decrease their chances of developing diabetes up to 58 percent by following the diet and exercise programs recommended by their physician or diabetes educator.

Diet Modifications

• Following a low-fat, low-carbohydrate diet is the current recommendation of the ADA for prediabetics. Physicians and/or diabetes educators can make recommendations on dietary plan selections.

Weight Loss and Exercise

• The ADA reports that losing 5 to 10 percent of total body weight can help to delay diabetes onset in prediabetic patients. Recommendations for weight loss include moderate exercise for 30 minutes at least five times per week.

Medications

• In some cases, prediabetic patients are given oral diabetes medications to prevent the disease. A case study, conducted by Richard J. Shrot and group, suggests that drugs such as Metformin may delay diabetes in prediabetics by as much as 30 percent.

Considerations

• According to the ADA, damage to the heart and circulatory system can occur in the prediabetes state. This is why early detection and treatment are key indicators to health maintenance for people with diabetes.