Is it possible to have diabetes and be skinny

Unfortunately, most patients and physicians are not on the lookout for diabetes in an adult who appears to be thin or normal weight. What further complicates matters for diabetes in general, is that the symptoms can be easy to miss. They may include none, one or several of the following: excessive thirst, urination, hunger, fatigue, tingling of the fingers and toes that can be intermittent, blurred vision, frequent colds, yeast infections, cuts that seem to take forever to heal, gum disease and weight loss.

Because of the relatively silent nature of diabetes, it is generally recommended that all adults have a fasting blood sugar or hemoglobin a1c checked every three years.

Type 2 diabetes is very treatable with diet, exercise and medications if need be. If you are in tune, you will be able to pick up these subtle signs before you have full blown type 2 diabetes and your need for care becomes a medical emergency. Health Topics Diabetes Type 2. Even if you have type 2—prone DNA, the disease is almost entirely preventable if you make smart lifestyle choices or catch prediabetes early. The problem is that about 93 percent of prediabetics don't even know they're sick.

Besides being tested, a crucial antidiabetes move is to eat healthy foods—not just foods that seem healthy, says Bell. Women can up their TOFI risk by downing too much junk food in disguise—all too easy with sugar lurking in "health foods" such as low-fat salad dressings, breakfast cereals, and vitamin drinks. Such fare is often packed with high-fructose corn syrup, which the body converts into visceral fat.

Eat as little added sugar as possible each day and stick with low-glycemic-index carbs and unprocessed foods like fruits, veggies, and whole grains. Since cutting out her guilty pleasures, Stephanie has watched her blood sugar levels drop. She has also said good-bye to carb-heavy white bread and embraced exercise nearly every day of the week.

Studies show that just 30 minutes of brisk walking a day can cut people's odds of developing type 2 by 58 percent—even people who are already prediabetic—according to the NIH.

Weight Loss. United States. Type keyword s to search. Today's Top Stories. Taraji P. Accessible Beauty Products For All. Tom Schierlitz. This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano. Advertisement - Continue Reading Below. More From Health. Your cells use this sugar as energy.

Without adequate insulin, sugar builds up in your blood. Weight is not a risk factor for type 1 diabetes. The only known risk factor for type 1 diabetes is family history, or your genetics. It uses a formula to estimate your body fat based on your height and weight. The resulting BMI number indicates where you are on a scale of underweight to obese. A healthy BMI is between Type 1 diabetes is commonly diagnosed in children. However, despite increasing rates of childhood obesity, research suggests weight is not a significant risk factor for this type of diabetes.

One study found that the rising cases of type 2 diabetes were related to increases in childhood obesity, but not type 1. Abbasi A, et al. Body-mass index and incidence of type 1 and type 2 diabetes in children and young adults in the UK: an observational cohort study.

DOI: doi. If you have type 2 diabetes, your pancreas has stopped producing enough insulin, your cells have become resistant to the insulin, or both. More than 90 percent of diabetes cases are type 2 diabetes. Diabetes quick facts. Weight is one factor that can contribute to the development of type 2 diabetes. An estimated National diabetes statistics report, However, weight is not the only factor. About People who might be considered thin or skinny can develop type 2 diabetes. A variety of factors may contribute:.

Your family history , or your genetics, is one of the leading risk factors for type 2 diabetes. If you have a parent with type 2 diabetes, your lifetime risk is 40 percent. If both parents have the condition, your risk is 70 percent. Prasad RB, et al. Genetics of type 2 diabetes—pitfalls and possibilities.

DOI: Research shows people with type 2 diabetes who are of normal weight have more visceral fat. This is a type of fat that surrounds the abdominal organs. It releases hormones that affect glucose and interfere with fat metabolism. One in five normal-weight adults now has prediabetes, up 8 percent from , finds new research from the University of Florida. Among adults over age 45 with BMIs under 25, one in three has high blood sugar, a double-digit jump in two decades.

Left untreated, up to 30 percent of people with prediabetes will develop full-blown type 2 within five years.