Jun 9, 2009 6:39 pm US/Eastern
Test Could Help Pre-Diabetics Lead Healthier Life
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (CBS) ―
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Nearly 24 million adults and children in the United States, or just about 8 percent of the population, have diabetes which can lead to a number of medical complications.
CBS
Nearly 24 million adults and children in the United States, just about 8 percent of the population, have diabetes which can lead to a number of medical complications.
Now one Florida doctor is trying to shut down the disease before it starts, CBS station WFOR-TV reported.
John Moreno, 52, doesn't want to be another American diagnosed with diabetes. The North Miami Beach resident recently learned he has pre-diabetes, a condition in which blood glucose levels are higher than normal, but not yet diabetic levels.
"I don't want to suffer diabetes. I don't want to limit my life. So I started working very hard in order to decrease my weight to do some more exercise to take care of my future diet," said Moreno.
Internist Carlos Riveros, with Coral Gables Hospital, is paying special attention to at-risk patients like Moreno.
"It's very important because pre-diabetes is a condition that is going to take you most of the times to be a diabetic or at least you're at higher risk than other persons with normal levels of glucose to be a diabetic," Riveros explained.
To determine pre-diabetes, a simple blood test is given to the patient and repeated for accuracy. If diagnosed, a patient can attempt to prevent full scale diabetes, WFOR-TV reported.
"Now, the studies have shown that you can prevent a person that is pre-diabetic to become a diabetic in 65 percent of the cases if you do just lifestyle modifications," said Moreno.
Those lifestyle modifications include exercise and diet.
It's estimated about 57 million people in the U.S. live with pre-diabetes, so catching it early could save the country billions. Healthcare costs for a diabetic person run on average $13,000 annually; a non-diabetic person's healthcare costs average only about $2,500.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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