Are you constantly feeling thirsty, tired, or irritable? You might brush it off as stress or a bad night’s sleep, but these could be subtle whispers from your body that something is seriously wrong with your blood sugar. These are the very signals that indicate you have unstable, high blood sugar. Knowing what to look for can empower you to detect high blood sugar, prediabetes, or even full-blown diabetes early on, before irreversible damage occurs.
Did you know that a staggering 50% of older adults have altered blood sugar, prediabetes, or diabetes, and a huge number of them don’t even know it? While they remain unaware, a silent destruction is taking place inside their bodies—damaging the eyes, brain, kidneys, heart, and arteries. People often discover the problem far too late. In this article, I’m going to break down the key warning signs your body is sending you. We’ll also dive into how to read your own blood lab reports to understand your numbers, and most importantly, what you can do starting today to improve your blood sugar levels naturally. (Based on the expertise of Dr. Juan I. Veller)
Classic Symptoms: Excessive thirst and frequent urination are two of the most common and earliest signs of high blood sugar, caused by your kidneys working overtime to flush out excess glucose.
Hidden Signs: Don’t ignore symptoms like sudden mood swings, constant, insatiable hunger, and chronic fatigue. These are directly linked to the rollercoaster of blood sugar spikes and crashes.
Know Your Numbers: Understanding your lab results is critical. A fasting glucose level between 100-125 mg/dL typically indicates prediabetes, while 126 mg/dL or higher suggests diabetes. The Hemoglobin A1c test gives a three-month average of your blood sugar control.
Inflammation is the Enemy: Chronic inflammation, often linked to visceral (belly) fat, is a primary driver of insulin resistance, which is the root cause of type 2 diabetes.
You Have the Power to Change: Through targeted lifestyle habits—prioritizing health, consistent exercise, and an anti-inflammatory diet—it is possible to manage, control, and in some cases, even reverse prediabetes and type 2 diabetes.
1. You’re Constantly Thirsty (Polydipsia)
Do you feel like you can’t drink enough water? Is your mouth constantly dry, no matter how much you hydrate? This excessive thirst, known medically as polydipsia, is a hallmark sign of high blood sugar. Here’s what’s happening inside your body: Sugar, which doctors call glucose, circulates in your bloodstream. Your kidneys act as a filter, and their job is to prevent this valuable glucose from escaping into your urine. When your blood sugar levels are normal, or even slightly elevated, the kidneys can handle it. The problem begins when your blood sugar climbs to levels of 180 mg/dL, 200 mg/dL, or higher. At this point, your kidneys become overwhelmed. They simply can’t reabsorb all the glucose, and it starts to spill into your urine. The critical thing to understand is that glucose is a molecule that attracts water. So, as sugar pours into your urine, it pulls large amounts of water along with it. This process dehydrates your body, making your blood thicker. Your brain gets the signal that you’re dehydrated, and it triggers an intense feeling of thirst.

2. You’re Urinating All the Time (Polyuria)
Following directly from the first point, that constant thirst is paired with constant trips to the bathroom. This isn’t a coincidence; it’s the other side of the same coin. Because your body is desperately trying to get rid of the excess sugar through your urine, and because that sugar is dragging water out with it, your bladder fills up much more frequently. You might notice you have to get up multiple times during the night to urinate, disrupting your sleep. This creates a frustrating and exhausting vicious cycle: you drink a lot of water because you’re thirsty, then you urinate a lot, which dehydrates you further, making you even more thirsty. It’s common for people with uncontrolled diabetes to feel like they are always dehydrated, no matter how much fluid they consume. If you look at a urine lab report, you might even see a finding called “glucosuria,” which literally means glucose in the urine, confirming that you are losing sugar this way.

3. Your Moods Are Unpredictable and Volatile
Have you noticed that you, or perhaps a family member, have been experiencing sudden mood swings? One moment you feel fine, and the next you’re incredibly anxious or irritable for no apparent reason. It’s easy to blame this on stress or just having a bad day, but it could be your blood sugar. The dramatic peaks and subsequent crashes of unstable blood sugar have a direct impact on your brain chemistry, leading to irritability and anxiety. It’s very common to hear patients say, “Oh, my husband has just always been grumpy.” But in reality, his unstable blood sugar was playing a fundamental role. It wasn’t his personality; it was a symptom. This happens because your brain relies on a steady supply of glucose to function properly. When your sugar levels swing wildly, your brain function is disrupted, directly affecting your mood and emotional regulation.

4. You Feel Hungry No Matter How Much You Eat (Polyphagia)
This is one of the most confusing and frustrating symptoms. You just ate a full meal, yet an hour later, you feel ravenously hungry again. What’s going on? The problem lies in your body’s satiety mechanisms—the signals that tell your brain, “Okay, you’re full, you can stop eating now.” In people with high blood sugar and insulin resistance, these signals are broken. This is largely due to chronic inflammation, which disrupts a key hormone called leptin. Leptin is the hormone that signals fullness to your brain. When you have insulin resistance, you often also have leptin resistance. Your body is producing the hormone, but your brain isn’t getting the message. This leads to constant hunger and cravings, creating another vicious cycle. You feel hungry, so you eat (often craving carbs or sugar). This causes a huge spike in insulin and blood sugar. Then, your sugar level crashes. Your brain, which is used to dangerously high levels of sugar, misinterprets this crash as starvation and sends out powerful hunger signals, forcing you to eat again. These constant peaks and valleys of unstable blood sugar not only cause irritability and cravings but also fuel obesity and pave the way for prediabetes and diabetes.
5. You’re Plagued by Chronic Fatigue
A vast majority of patients with blood sugar issues report feeling exhausted all day long. It’s a deep, persistent fatigue that doesn’t go away even with a full night’s sleep. You feel as if you’ve run a marathon when you’ve barely done anything. The irony is that your blood is full of energy—sugar—but your body can’t use it. Because of insulin resistance, the doors to your cells (especially your muscle cells) are locked. Insulin is the key that should unlock these doors to let glucose in for energy. When insulin doesn’t work properly, the sugar remains trapped in your bloodstream, and your cells are starved of fuel. Your muscles can’t get the energy they need, so you feel tired. This lack of energy makes it harder to exercise, which would actually help the condition. Add to that poor sleep from urinating all night and elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol, and you have a perfect storm for chronic fatigue.
6. Understanding Your Blood Work: Are You Prediabetic or Diabetic?
If you’re experiencing several of these symptoms, it’s time to look at the data. A simple blood test can give you clear answers. When you get your lab report, look for “Glucose.”
Fasting Glucose: This test is done after you haven’t eaten for at least 8 hours. A normal value is below 100 mg/dL. If your value is between 100 and 125 mg/dL, it generally indicates prediabetes. A doctor will usually want to repeat the test to confirm. If two separate tests fall in this range, you are considered prediabetic. A fasting glucose level of 126 mg/dL or higher on two separate occasions means you have diabetes.
Hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c): This is a crucial test that many doctors rely on. It gives an average picture of your blood sugar levels over the past three months. Why is this so important? Because some people might “behave” and eat well for the week before their blood test, giving them a deceptively good fasting glucose number. The A1c doesn’t lie; it reveals your long-term control. It’s very difficult to fool your doctor with the A1c test. High A1c values are also used to diagnose prediabetes and diabetes.
7. The Vicious Cycle of Inflammation and Belly Fat
Many people think, “But I’m not overweight, so I can’t be inflamed.” This is a dangerous misconception. You don’t have to be obese to have a problem. Even a small amount of belly fat, what doctors call visceral fat, is a major issue. This isn’t the fat you can pinch under your skin; it’s fat that surrounds your internal organs. This visceral fat is metabolically active, meaning it functions like an organ itself, pumping out inflammatory substances into your body. These substances worsen leptin resistance (making you hungrier) and, most importantly, drive insulin resistance. Having a belly is not just a cosmetic issue; it’s a serious medical problem that directly contributes to high blood sugar, heart attacks, blindness, and kidney failure.
How to Fight Back: 3 Pillars for Taking Control
The consequences of uncontrolled diabetes are severe—blindness, kidney dialysis, heart attacks, strokes, and amputations. But the good news is that you can take action. If you are prediabetic, you can do a lot to reverse it. Even if you are diabetic, you can manage the disease and prevent its progression with simple, powerful habits.

Prioritize Your Health: I understand you’re busy. Your work and projects are important. But if you have a stroke, lose a leg, or end up on dialysis, those projects will come to a halt. Your health must be your number one priority. You have to carve out the time.
Move Your Body: Everyone has 30-40 minutes a day to walk, run, bike, swim, or go to the gym. Exercise builds muscle, and muscle is your best friend in controlling diabetes. When you work your muscles, they open up their doors to take in sugar from the blood, which helps control your levels. If you truly have no time, integrate movement into your day. Take the stairs instead of the elevator. Park your car farther from the office. Stand up from your desk every hour. If you have arthritis, try swimming or cycling. There is a form of exercise for every single person.
Swap Inflammatory Foods for Anti-Inflammatory Foods: This is non-negotiable. Cut out sodas, fruit juices, and sugary desserts. Replace them with green tea, black coffee, and water infused with lemon, rosemary, or cinnamon. Use apple cider vinegar in your meals to help blunt the absorption of sugar. Add turmeric to your food to fight inflammation. Eat healthy fats like extra virgin olive oil and fatty fish like salmon. Prioritize protein to build muscle. Stop eating those toxic “cereal bars” marketed as healthy but are full of junk. Avoid refined seed oils, which are highly inflammatory.
A Final Word on Metformin
If you’ve been diagnosed with diabetes, you may have been prescribed metformin. You may have also heard from a well-meaning relative that it’s bad for you. In my opinion as a health professional, metformin is an excellent medication when used correctly. It greatly benefits people with diabetes and can even help many prediabetics from ever progressing to full-blown diabetes. However, it is not a magic pill. Taking metformin while continuing to eat poorly, avoid exercise, sleep badly, and live a sedentary life is useless. You must combine both worlds—smart lifestyle changes and, if necessary, appropriate medication—to achieve the best outcome for your health