How to tell if you have prediabetes – and what you can do about it

Cases of type 2 diabetes have doubled in the past 15 years – but more than half can be prevented or delayed. Maria Lally talks to the experts to find out how to tell if you are at risk... and the actions you can take now

There could be 13.5 million people in Britain with prediabetes, according to Diabetes UK (Getty)

Sometimes when he’s in a coffee shop, waiting in line for his black coffee, Professor Roy Taylor takes a look around. “What I notice is the amount of single-serving cakes or muffins that contain 300 or 400 calories,” says Taylor, emeritus professor of medicine and metabolism at Newcastle University, and author of Your Simple Guide to Reversing Type 2 Diabetes. “While some of the drinks contain close to the same amount. It is something we need to grasp.”

It certainly is. The charity Diabetes UK estimates that more than 5 million people in the UK are living with diabetes, which is an all-time high. Cases of type 2 diabetes have more than doubled in the past 15 years.

Eight per cent of those living with diabetes have type 1, whose cause is unknown. Type 2 diabetes, however, is largely caused by diet and lifestyle, and accounts for around 90 per cent of cases.