Diabetes, Blood Pressure and Thyroid Care in Miami Lakes

Why these conditions need a schedule

Diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and an underactive thyroid share one trait: you can feel fine while they get worse. More than 40 million Americans have diabetes, and more than 1 in 4 adults with diabetes don’t know they have it. More than 2 in 5 adults have prediabetes, and about 8 in 10 of them don’t know it (CDC). In Miami-Dade, about 1 in 8 adults say a doctor has told them they have diabetes (12.5% in the state’s 2022 survey, Florida Department of Health).

High blood pressure is just as common and just as quiet: nearly half of U.S. adults have it (CDC), and it raises the risk of heart disease and stroke, two leading causes of death for Americans (CDC). About 3 in 4 people with diabetes also have high blood pressure (CDC), which is why the same visit usually looks after both.

The diabetes care schedule

The A1C test shows your average blood sugar over the past 3 months (NIDDK). For most people with diabetes, the goal is an A1C below 7% (NIDDK), though your provider may set a different goal for you. The CDC’s schedule:

Check	How often	What it involves
A1C test	Every 6 months if you’re meeting your goals; every 3 months if your treatment changed or you’re not	A blood test, drawn in the office
Visit with your provider	Every 3 or 6 months, on the same rhythm	Blood pressure and weight checked; medicines and self-care plan reviewed
Kidney tests	Every year	A urine test for albumin and a blood test of how well the kidneys filter
Cholesterol test	Every year	A blood test
Complete foot check	Every year, more often after foot problems	Plus checking your own feet every day
Dilated eye exam	Every year, more often after eye problems	Done by an eye doctor

Sources: CDC care schedule; NIDDK on kidney tests.

The schedule exists because diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure, lower-limb amputations and adult blindness (CDC). Early treatment greatly lowers the risk of amputation (CDC), and finding and treating diabetic eye disease early can reduce the risk of blindness by 95 percent (NIDDK).

Prediabetes: the window to change course

In the original Diabetes Prevention Program study, people in the lifestyle program cut their chances of developing type 2 diabetes by 58%, and by 71% for those 60 and older (NIDDK). The target was modest: losing 5% to 7% of body weight, about 10 to 14 pounds for a 200-pound person (CDC). Our nutrition counseling and medical weight loss programs are built for exactly that. Medicare covers up to 2 diabetes screenings a year if you’re at risk (Medicare.gov).

High blood pressure: know your numbers

Category	Top number (systolic)	Bottom number (diastolic)
Normal	Below 120	and below 80
Elevated	120 to 129	and below 80
Stage 1 high blood pressure	130 to 139	or 80 to 89
Stage 2 high blood pressure	140 or higher	or 90 or higher

The categories come from the 2025 American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology guideline, which kept the 2017 numbers and set a goal below 130/80 for most adults (AHA).

One reading is not the whole story. As many as 1 in 3 people who have a high reading at the doctor’s office may have normal readings outside it (CDC), which is why the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force advises confirming high blood pressure with readings taken outside the clinic before treatment starts (USPSTF). The DASH eating plan lowers blood pressure (NHLBI); for more, read our article on how to lower blood pressure naturally.

Taking your blood pressure at home

Take every reading the same way. The CDC’s checklist (CDC):

• Don’t eat or drink anything for 30 minutes before, and empty your bladder.
• Sit with your back supported for at least 5 minutes first, feet flat on the floor and legs uncrossed.
• Rest your arm, with the cuff on it, on a table at chest height, and don’t talk during the reading.
• Take at least two readings, 1 or 2 minutes apart, at the same time every day.
• Smoking, alcohol, caffeine or exercise in the 30 minutes before can push the reading up.

Write the numbers down, and bring the log, or the cuff itself, to your next visit.

Cholesterol and your heart risk

Most healthy adults should have their cholesterol checked every 4 to 6 years; people with heart disease, diabetes or a family history of high cholesterol need it more often (CDC). Whether a statin makes sense depends on your overall risk: the USPSTF recommends one for adults 40 to 75 who have at least one risk factor, such as high cholesterol, diabetes, high blood pressure or smoking, and an estimated 10-year risk of a heart attack or stroke of 10% or more (USPSTF). Your provider can estimate that risk with you; an EKG and your blood work are part of the picture.

Thyroid: underactive and overactive

Underactive thyroid (hypothyroidism) affects nearly 5 out of 100 Americans 12 and older, though most cases are mild. It’s much more common in women and in people over 60, and the most common cause is Hashimoto’s disease, an autoimmune disorder. Treatment is levothyroxine, a thyroid hormone medicine identical to the hormone a healthy thyroid makes. Your blood is tested about 6 to 8 weeks after you start and after each dose change; once the dose is right, the test is usually repeated in 6 months and then once a year. An underactive thyroid can also contribute to high cholesterol (NIDDK).

Overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism) affects about 1 in 100 Americans 12 and older. The most common cause is Graves’ disease, also autoimmune, and it’s usually treated with medicines, radioiodine therapy or surgery (NIDDK).

Bring your numbers, and every medicine

Long-term conditions are looked after at both the Miami Lakes office and the Kendall office, by the practice’s physicians and nurse practitioners, as part of your primary care. Bring your blood sugar log, your home blood pressure readings and every medicine you take. The Medicare guide explains coverage, and new patients can start with the new patient guide.

If a reading worries you between visits, call the office or come in for a same-day visit. Chest pain, trouble breathing, or signs of a stroke such as a drooping face or a weak arm are emergencies: call 911 (CDC, CDC).