One Lifestyle Change Can Reverse Prediabetes: Study Finds

The study found that “performing physical activity for at least 150 minutes per week (as validated by the IPAQ) was found to increase the probability [of prediabetes reversion] by 4.15 times.” In contrast, high body mass index (BMI) and elevated glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) levels significantly reduced the chances of reversing prediabetes. Participants with an HbA1c level over 6% or a BMI above 25 had 86% and 75% lower odds, respectively, of returning to normoglycemia.

“Excessive body weight gain and poor glycemic control are the two major factors that can significantly prevent the reversion of prediabetes to normoglycemia,” the study concluded. The glucose/triglyceride index also showed promise as a low-cost marker for insulin resistance, especially useful in low-resource settings.

Reference: Wilfredo Antonio Rivera-Martínez. 2025. Factors related to reversal of prediabetes in patients from a cardiovascular risk program during 2019 – 2023. Cardiovascular Diabetology – Endocrinology Reports. DOI: 10.1186/s40842-025-00224-w, https://clindiabetesendo.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40842-025-00224-w