A healthier diet and exercise can go a long way toward preventing the onset of diabetes.

It’s well documented that diabetes can seriously complicate a heart condition, but research continues to show that elevated glucose levels that aren’t yet considered diabetes can boost our risk of cardiovascular problems, even if we don’t yet have heart disease.

Glucose enters the bloodstream after eating foods containing carbohydrates. The pancreas makes insulin to regulate glucose levels. In type 2 diabetes, glucose builds up in the bloodstream because it can’t enter the cells for use as energy.

An estimated 37 million Americans age 65 and older have diabetes, about a quarter of that population. But an additional 20 to 30 percent of seniors—about 7 to 11 million older adults—are not considered to have diabetes, but do have the form of "pre-diabetes" called impaired glucose tolerance. Unfortunately, it’s a condition that can be overlooked by physicians because pre-diabetes is seldom accompanied by obvious symptoms. …

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