People can also have insulin resistance that’s reversible or manageable with lifestyle changes. They cause your blood sugar to increase quickly and require a lot of insulin to bring blood sugar back down. The glycemic index (GI) is a tool that can help you determine what foods have the biggest impact on your blood sugar levels. Eating nutritious foods, exercising regularly and losing excess weight may decrease your insulin resistance. For this reason, lifestyle modifications are the primary treatment for insulin resistance. Issues with certain hormones can affect how well your body uses insulin. People have prediabetes if they have blood glucose levels that are higher than normal but not high enough to be diagnosed as type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance can lead to increased blood glucose levels, also called blood sugar levels, and weight gain. When your body is exposed to too much blood sugar over an extended period of time, you can develop insulin resistance. As long as your pancreas can make enough insulin to balance out your blood sugar levels, they’ll stay in a healthy range. When the cells are experiencing insulin resistance, the body responds by producing more insulin, as it tries to move glucose into the cells. There are a variety of possible causes of insulin resistance, including excess fat tissue in the body (especially around the organs), lifestyle factors, genetics, and environmental factors. Beyond its direct impact on glucose metabolism, insulin also plays a major role in body weight control by directing the body to use energy or to store it as fat. Insulin is a hormone that the body uses to help control glucose levels. Health care professionals begin to test children who have overweight or obesity when they’re age 10 or have reached puberty. Your primary health care professional may be a doctor, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner. The test for insulin resistance is primarily used only for research studies. If your cells don’t respond well to insulin, over time your pancreas may not make enough insulin to help extra glucose enter your cells. But not everyone with prediabetes develops type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance is a complex condition in which your body doesn’t respond as it should to insulin. A sedentary lifestyle impairs blood flow and cardiovascular function essential for arousal. If you suspect your medication is affecting your libido, speak with your healthcare provider about alternatives. Supporting your thyroid with targeted nutrition through a supplement like Thyroid Revive may help support healthy thyroid function and the sexual vitality that flows from it. Hypothyroidism reduces energy, blood flow, hormone production, and neurotransmitter synthesis. Sign up for HEALTHBeat and receive trusted health information delivered right to your inbox. For example, your doctor may advise you to increase your protein intake to reduce the risk of muscle loss. There may be things you can do to mitigate some of these risks.