According to new study information released by Novo Nordisk as part the their National Change Diabetes program 25% of all adult Americans has pre-diabetes.  An additional six million Americans already have type 2 diabetes but do not know it.

1 in 4 adults in America have pre-diabetes. An additional 6.3 million adult Americans have undiagnosed type 2 diabetes.

According to MedicalNewsToday.com, “Pre-diabetes, a precursor to type 2 diabetes that is characterized by elevated glucose levels, affects one in four adults, or an estimated 57 million Americans. According to the study, as many as 83 percent of people with impaired glucose tolerance may develop diabetes unless they take significant steps to lose weight, eat right and exercise more. The total annual cost of pre-diabetes to the nation’s health care system is more than $25 billion, or $443 for each adult suffering from the condition, according to the study.”

Should you be tested for pre-diabetes? Regardless of your weight, if you are age 45 or older, the American Diabetes Association recommends you be screened for pre-diabetes.  There are many other people with high risk factors, including people with low thyroid, women with PCOS, who are overweight, or have a family history or type 2 diabetes that should also be tested.  To see if you are at risk for pre-diabetes, read, “Who should be tested for pre-diabetes?”

A related condition, insulin resistance, is even more frequently undiagnosed and almost always precedes pre-diabetes by months or years.    Should you be tested for insulin resistance?