Risk Factors for Type 2 Adult Diabetes

• Being more than 20% overweight
• Physical inactivity
• Having a first degree relative with diabetes (parents or siblings)
• Certain ethic groups have a higher risk of diabetes, including: African American, Native American, Latin American, Asian American, Pacific Islander
• Having a history of gestational (pregnancy-related) diabetes or giving birth to a baby which weighed more than 9 pounds
• Having a history of hypertension (high blood pressure)
• Having a high fasting blood sugar or an impaired glucose tolerance on previous blood tests.
• Having Triglycerides (a lab measure of fats in the blood) which are more than 250 mg/dl
• Having HDL cholesterol ("good" cholesterol ) which is less than 35 mg/dL.