Pre-diabetes

Pre-diabetes describes a condition where your blood glucose levels are higher than normal, but not high enough for you to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

Two conditions fall into the category of pre-diabetes, impaired fasting glucose (IGF) and impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). You may be diagnosed with one or both of these conditions.

Having pre-diabetes puts you at increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

What is diabetes?

Diabetes is a chronic condition where body is unable to break down the glucose (sugars) in food into energy because it either does not produce enough insulin or cannot use insulin properly.

This leads to high levels of glucose in the blood, which if left untreated, can have extremely serious consequences.

How do I know if I have pre-diabetes?

There are not always clear signs or symptoms of pre-diabetes. You will need to have a glucose test, ordered by your GP, to determine if you have this condition.

Can I stop pre-diabetes turning into type 2 diabetes?

There is strong evidence to show that up to 58% of people with pre-diabetes can stop the condition progressing to type 2 diabetes by adopting a healthy lifestyle and losing 5 to 10% of their body weight.

Read more about reducing your risk of type 2 diabetes.

How can Diabetes WA help me?

Diabetes WA is here to help you adopt a healthy lifestyle and avoid a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes.

We offer healthy lifestyle and diabetes prevention programs you can book into.

You can also contact our Diabetes WA Helpline to have all of your diabetes questions answered by a qualified professional.

We also have a resource library – full of factsheets, ebooks and multicultural resources – at your disposal.