Early lifestyle changes can reverse prediabetes and even help some patients reduce or stop diabetes medication, says expert
Speaking about diabetes awareness, Dr. Chaitanya Challa, Senior Consultant - General Medicine, CARE Hospitals, Banjara Hills, said, “Diabetes does not kill. Uncontrolled diabetes does.” He stressed that timely diagnosis, lifestyle modification and regular monitoring can prevent most long-term complications.
According to Dr. Chaitanya, a fasting blood sugar level below 100 mg/dL is considered normal, while 126 mg/dL or above confirms diabetes. Individuals with fasting sugar levels between 100 and 125 mg/dL fall into the prediabetes category, offering a crucial window to reverse the condition through healthy lifestyle changes.
“People with prediabetes can return to normal sugar levels by exercising regularly, reducing sweets and refined carbohydrates, limiting alcohol intake, maintaining a healthy weight and adopting disciplined eating habits. If these changes are ignored, prediabetes often progresses to diabetes,” he explained.
He said early symptoms of diabetes include frequent urination, excessive thirst, increased hunger, unexplained weight gain or weight loss, dark patches on the skin caused by insulin resistance, fatigue and recurrent infections. Unfortunately, many people ignore these warning signs until complications develop.
If left uncontrolled, diabetes can gradually damage multiple organs. It significantly increases the risk of heart attacks, diabetic retinopathy leading to vision loss, kidney disease that may eventually require dialysis, nerve damage (neuropathy), poor blood circulation resulting in foot ulcers and peripheral vascular disease, and severe emergencies such as diabetic ketoacidosis and diabetic coma.
Dr. Chaitanya explained that diabetes can be diagnosed through any one of three standard tests:
- Fasting blood sugar of 126 mg/dL or above
- HbA1c (three-month average blood sugar) of 6.5% or higher
- Random blood sugar above 200 mg/dL in a person with classic diabetes symptoms
“There is a common misconception that only people with a family history develop diabetes. While genetics play a role, unhealthy lifestyle choices alone can trigger diabetes, even in people with no family history. In fact, poor lifestyle habits can start the disease in one generation and pass the risk to the next,” he noted.
He explained that consuming excessive quantities of rice, sweets, sugary beverages, processed foods and alcohol repeatedly forces the body to release large amounts of insulin. Over time, fat accumulation in the liver and other tissues leads to insulin resistance, where the body’s insulin becomes less effective, eventually resulting in diabetes.
Dr. Chaitanya emphasised that lifestyle management remains the cornerstone of diabetes treatment. “The first medicine for diabetes is not a tablet. It is lifestyle correction. Eat a balanced diet, reduce excess rice and sweets, limit alcohol, avoid smoking and exercise every day. Medicines become necessary only when lifestyle measures alone are insufficient.”
He also highlighted that type 2 diabetes can be reversible in selected patients, particularly when diagnosed early. “Patients who lose weight, exercise consistently and follow dietary advice can significantly reduce their dependence on medicines. Some are even able to stop medication under medical supervision. However, this is possible only with sustained lifestyle discipline—not by relying on tablets while continuing unhealthy habits,” he said.
Doctors advise adults, especially those who are overweight, have a family history of diabetes or lead sedentary lifestyles, to undergo regular blood sugar screening and seek medical advice at the earliest signs of abnormal glucose levels. Early intervention remains the most effective strategy to prevent lifelong complications.