Treatment

Healthy lifestyle choices can help you bring your blood sugar level back to normal, or at least keep it from rising toward the levels seen in type 2 diabetes.

To prevent prediabetes from progressing to type 2 diabetes, try to:

• Eat healthy foods. Choose foods low in fat and calories and high in fiber. Focus on fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Eat a variety of foods to help you achieve your goals without compromising taste or nutrition.
• Be more active. Aim for at least 150 minutes of moderate or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity a week.
• Lose excess weight. If you're overweight, losing just 5% to 7% of your body weight — about 14 pounds (6.4 kilograms) if you weigh 200 pounds (91 kilograms) — can reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes. To keep your weight in a healthy range, focus on permanent changes to your eating and exercise habits.
• Stop smoking. Smoking may up your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
• Take medications as needed. If you're at high risk of diabetes, your doctor might recommend metformin (Glumetza, others). Medications to control cholesterol and high blood pressure might also be prescribed.

Children and prediabetes treatment

Children with prediabetes should undertake the lifestyle changes recommended for adults with type 2 diabetes, including:

• Losing weight
• Eating fewer refined carbohydrates and fats, and more fiber
• Reducing portion sizes
• Eating out less often
• Spending at least one hour every day in physical activity

Medication generally isn't recommended for children with prediabetes unless lifestyle changes aren't improving blood sugar levels. If medication is needed, metformin (Glumetza, others) is usually the recommended drug.