If you’re guilty of putting off healthful eating in favor of late-night ice cream binges or choosing the side of French fries instead of salad, you might have more to lose than a few extra pounds.
Making sure your pants still fit is a nice perk when choosing a healthful lifestyle path, but a bigger benefit of a good diet is preventing diabetes, the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Over the last two decades, the number of adults diagnosed with diabetes has more than doubled. To make matters worse, more than 30 million people in the United States have diabetes, and one in four of them are undiagnosed. The CDC attributes an overweight and aging American population to these alarming statistics.
Getting Tested for Diabetes at Any Lab Test Now®
Any Lab Test Now, a leader in retail medical testing, with more than 175 locations nationwide, is making it easy to take charge of your health and control your weight by providing easy access to the Hemoglobin A1c Test. This test measures overall blood glucose levels over a period of two to three months and can be used to help detect pre‐diabetes and diagnose diabetes. Diabetes affects how your body absorbs glucose, which is an important source of energy. Glucose is a key component to nourishing your muscles and brain, according to Mayo Clinic.
If you already know you suffer from diabetes, the Hemoglobin A1c Test can help give you confidence your diabetes is under control. Diabetes ups your chance of developing other serious health problems, the CDC reports. People can decrease their chances of developing heart disease and kidney disease by keeping their blood sugar levels in check.
Walk in to any one of our locations and get your results in record time at an affordable price, without the hassle of a doctor visit.
Red Flags of Diabetes
Obesity is not the only red flag you might be at risk. Here are five additional factors that increase your chances of developing pre-diabetes, or type 2 diabetes:
- Over age 45
- A family history of diabetes
- Exercise less than three times per week
- Given birth to a baby weighing more than 9 pounds, or had gestational diabetes
- African Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, Pacific Islanders and some Asian Americans all have a higher chance of developing diabetes
Will My Body Show Any Symptoms?
It’s important to understand the red flags of type 2 diabetes because the symptoms of the disease may not be easy to recognize. To make matters worse, the symptoms of type 2 diabetes can develop slowly over a number of years, and many people have no symptoms at all. People with type 2 diabetes occasionally report an increase in thirst and urination, unexplained weight loss, hunger, fatigue and blurry vision. Areas of darkened skin, frequent infections and sores that heal slowly are also important to keep an eye out for if you think you are at risk for diabetes.
If concerns over your health are not reason enough to get tested for diabetes, the hit on your finances is no joke. Health care costs over your lifetime will be double if you have diabetes, the CDC reports. For more specific numbers, diabetics spend about $13,700 per year, and nearly $8,000 of those costs are to treat the disease.
Take Charge of Your Health
Don’t despair, the news isn’t all gloomy. It’s not too late to prevent, or delay, the onset of type 2 diabetes and prediabetes. Simple steps including diet, increasing physical activity and managing stress will all reduce your chances of getting the disease. People can also benefit from working with a trained wellness coach and getting support from folks who are also following a path to healthy living.
If your test results do come back positive for type 2 diabetes, a doctor can help you get it under control. Treating type 2 diabetes will still require adopting healthy eating habits and exercise. But patients may need to test their blood sugar and administer insulin injections, or take diabetes medication, according to Mayo Clinic.
While November begins the holiday season of indulgence and overeating, it’s also National Diabetes Awareness Month, which makes it the perfect time to challenge yourself to put down the slice of pumpkin pie and visit Any Lab Test Now to take the Hemoglobin A1c Test.
