Ten key facts on insulin resistance

Diabetes and Primary Care,  Summer, 2003  by Michael Mead

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FACT 10: Managing insulin resistance is easier by means of a checklist to ensure you are continually targeting the main risk factors

Whenever considering insulin resistance, remember the simple checklist BAGODES:

* Blood pressure

* Aspirin

* Glycaemia

* Obesity

* Dyslipidaemia

* Exercise

* Smoking

A simple checklist like this will ensure that healthcare professionals do not miss out on important interventions with individual patients.

Conclusion

We now understand that insulin resistance poses a major risk in type 2 diabetes. By effectively targeting insulin resistance much can be achieved in primary care to reduce the excess risk of diabetes in our patients. These ten key facts should serve as the starting point for developing a strategy to target insulin resistance within practices and primary care organisations.

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