THE WHIZ QUIZ

 

 

Can you pass it? A simple urine test can reveal if you’re at risk for diabetes, according to new research in the Journal of Hypertension. In the study by French scientists, men with even moderately high urine levels of albumin, a protein that regulates blood volume, had up to a 97 percent greater risk of developing diabetes than men with the lowest levels—even in the absence of common risk factors, such as obesity or cardiovascular disease. While more research needs to be done to understand the connection, the study authors speculate that elevated levels of albumin could cause artery damage, which may in turn lead to insulin resistance. Ask your doctor for an albumin test: Urine levels above 9 milligrams per liter may signal a problem.

 

 

Image by Christoph Niemann