Early Detection of Diabetes

Early detection means finding diabetes before symptoms start. For type 1 diabetes, a simple blood test can find signs months or even years before blood sugar goes up. For type 2 diabetes, blood sugar and A1C tests can find prediabetes, when there’s still time to slow or stop it.

Anyone with a parent, brother, sister or child with type 1 diabetes should talk to their doctor about screening. But family history isn’t the only risk. Most people with type 1 diabetes have no family history at all, so screening can help anyone. Kids can be screened starting at age 2.

Screening for type 1 diabetes is a blood test that checks for autoantibodies. These are markers that show your immune system is attacking the cells that make insulin. You can click the “Get Screened” button on this page to order a test.

Your next step depends on how many autoantibodies the test found:

0 autoantibodies: Your immune system isn’t attacking your insulin-making cells right now. Ask your doctor about testing again each year.

1 autoantibody: You could be on your way to type 1 diabetes. You’ll need a second test at your doctor’s office to confirm it.

2 or more autoantibodies: The earliest stage of type 1 diabetes has started. See your doctor in the next few weeks.

After a positive test, you and your doctor make a plan to watch for changes. The plan usually includes more autoantibody tests, blood sugar checks and a C-peptide test. A C-peptide test shows how much insulin your body still makes. You can also ask about a continuous glucose monitor (CGM), treatments that may delay type 1 diabetes and clinical trials.

Type 1 diabetes develops in 3 stages:

Stage 1: 2 or more autoantibodies, normal blood sugar and no symptoms
Stage 2: Blood sugar starts to rise, but there are usually still no symptoms
Stage 3: Blood sugar is high, symptoms show up and insulin is needed

Most people aren’t diagnosed until stage 3. Screening can find type 1 diabetes in stage 1 or 2.

The biggest benefit is a lower risk of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a life-threatening emergency caused by very high blood sugar. In a study of almost 100,000 kids in Germany, only 1% of kids found early had DKA at diagnosis. In the US, 40% to 60% of kids who weren’t screened have DKA at diagnosis. Finding type 1 diabetes early also gives you time to prepare and look at treatment options.

Yes. A medicine called Tzield can delay stage 3 type 1 diabetes for people in stage 2. It’s approved for children as young as age 1. In 2026, the FDA also approved Tzield for kids ages 8 to 17 who were recently diagnosed with stage 3, to help protect the insulin-making cells they still have.

Type 2 diabetes and prediabetes are found with blood sugar tests, like an A1C test. An A1C shows your average blood sugar over about 3 months. An A1C of 5.7% to 6.4% means prediabetes. An A1C of 6.5% or higher means diabetes. If you have prediabetes, there’s a lot you can do to keep it from turning into type 2 diabetes.

No matter your results, you’re not alone. Beyond Type 1 can connect you with:

Mental health providers, through the American Diabetes Association’s directory
Clinical trials, through Antidote
Help for new diagnoses, through Beyond Diagnosis