Prediabetes usually occurs in adults who are middle-aged or older. But a worrisome increase in the number of children and teenagers who are overweight has led to an upswing in the condition among younger people. Children who are overweight and have two of the following risk factors should be screened:

• Type 1 Diabetes
• Type 2 Diabetes

• They have a family history of type 2 diabetes.
• They are a member of a high-risk ethnic population (including Asian Americans, African-Americans, Latinos, and American Indians).
• They show signs of insulin resistance, including acanthosis nigricans (velvety brownish-gray skin patches that are often on the neck or in skin folds).

The American Diabetes Association recommends that such high-risk children be screened beginning at age 10 or at the onset of puberty. If the test is normal, they should be screened again in two years.