Is Pre-Diabetes Just "Baby Diabetes"?
Understanding Insulin Resistance and How to Reverse It
If you’ve been told you’re “just pre-diabetic” and not to worry yet—you’ve been misled. Pre-diabetes isn’t something to wait on. It’s an alarm bell. And it’s one of the most reversible metabolic conditions if you know where to look: insulin.
This post explores what pre-diabetes really is, how insulin resistance plays a central role, and what steps you can take right now to turn it around.
First: Let’s Talk About Insulin
Insulin is a hormone that tells your cells to take in glucose (sugar) for energy. But when your body starts overproducing insulin due to a high-glucose load or constant stress, your cells begin to ignore it. This is called insulin resistance, and it’s the root cause behind pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes.
Many people track their blood sugar or A1C, but these are lagging indicators. Insulin resistance happens long before those numbers go out of range.
So… What Is Pre-Diabetes?
Pre-diabetes is often viewed as a mild condition, but it’s a metabolic red flag. It means your fasting blood sugar and A1C are creeping upward—often into the following ranges:
Fasting glucose: 100–125 mg/dL
A1C: 5.7–6.4%
But behind the scenes, your fasting insulin may already be significantly elevated. That’s the real story. High insulin levels mean your cells are overloaded and your mitochondria—the energy producers in your cells—are essentially yelling, “Too much!” and starting to shut down responsiveness.
The Real Progression:
High Insulin → Rising Glucose → Pre-Diabetes → Diabetes
By the time blood sugar rises, insulin has often been chronically elevated for years. Waiting until glucose is out of range means you’re several steps behind. Instead, measuring fasting insulin is one of the most proactive things you can do for your metabolic health.
What Drives Insulin Resistance?
Insulin resistance isn’t just about eating too many sweets (though that matters). Several modern lifestyle factors play a major role:
1. Chronic Stress
Your body doesn’t know the difference between a lion attack and an angry email. Stress raises cortisol, which triggers the liver to release glucose into the bloodstream. If you’re not burning it off (e.g. via movement), the body must produce more insulin to clean it up. Do this repeatedly, and insulin resistance begins to build.
2. Poor Sleep
Just one night of poor sleep can temporarily make you as insulin resistant as a person with type 2 diabetes. Chronic sleep disruption—late nights, screens before bed, or high stress—keeps your body in a metabolic emergency state.
3. Diet & Inflammation
A high-carb, grain-heavy, ultra-processed diet (also known as the Standard American Diet) keeps blood sugar elevated. But inflammation can also come from food sensitivities—not just sugar.
Even “healthy” foods like eggs, gluten, or dairy can create low-grade inflammation if your gut is compromised.
Fiber, while beneficial, can be irritating to the gut lining if your microbiome is imbalanced or your gut is leaky.
Inflammation = stress on the body = more insulin required to do the same job.
Actionable Steps to Reverse Pre-Diabetes
Pre-diabetes is not a waiting game—it’s an opportunity. Here are simple, impactful ways to start reversing insulin resistance today:
✅ Prioritize Deep, Restful Sleep
Use blue light blocking glasses before bed
Create a consistent wind-down routine
Avoid heavy meals or screens late at night
Sleep is when your body resets insulin sensitivity.
✅ Reduce Stress at the Source
Set boundaries with work or social obligations
Prioritize activities that calm your nervous system (nature, prayer, breathwork, journaling)
Remember: you can’t pour from an empty cup. Reducing stress isn't selfish—it's necessary.
✅ Clean Up Your Diet
Reduce refined carbohydrates and sugar
Eat more whole, single-ingredient foods
Focus on protein, healthy fats, and low-starch veggies
Identify and reduce personal food triggers
Pro Tip: You don’t have to go keto—but bringing carbs down even slightly can reduce your insulin load dramatically.
✅ Test, Don’t Guess
Ask your doctor (or functional provider) to test:
Fasting insulin
HOMA-IR score (insulin resistance index)
Full thyroid panel
Gut health markers
Micronutrient deficiencies
Quick Sidebar: The Fat Storage Connection
Insulin doesn’t just regulate blood sugar—it’s your fat storage hormone. When insulin is high:
Glucagon (your fat-burning hormone) stays suppressed
Your body is stuck in storage mode, not burn mode
Reducing insulin is key not just for reversing diabetes, but also for sustainable fat loss and energy.
Final Thoughts: You’re Not Broken—You’re Overloaded
Insulin resistance doesn’t happen because your body is broken. It happens because your body is trying to protect itself from overload.
The good news? It’s highly reversible with the right lifestyle changes, testing, and support.
Metabolic dysfunction affects over 93% of adults in the U.S. Let’s change that story—starting with education and small, consistent changes that put you back in control of your health.
