Diabetes screening ought to now begin at 35 for people who find themselves chubby, nationwide panel recommends

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Erica Carbajal – –

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The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force issued draft recommendations on March 16 to reduce the starting age for prediabetes and type 2 diabetes screening from 40 to 35.

The recommendations are for those with a body mass index between 25 and 30, which means a person is overweight, and for those with a BMI of 30 or higher who are considered obese according to the CDC. The screening should continue until the age of 70, according to the draft guidelines.

“We know that the rate of prediabetes and diabetes is increasing in younger people,” said Dr. Chien-Wen Tseng, a task force member and professor of family medicine at the University of Hawaii at Honolulu, told NBC News. “Our main reason for lowering age is to tailor the screening to the problem: if diabetes and prediabetes start at a young age, we should screen at a younger age.”

After completing the panel’s updated recommendation, most private insurers would have to offer the screening tests for free, the Wall Street Journal reported on March 16.

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