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You might be metabolically sick right now and have no idea — here's the test most doctors skip
💡 93% of US adults show metabolic dysfunction, but standard tests miss it. Ask for an OGTT or fasting insulin test — standard fasting glucose catches it too late.
One of Attia's most alarming claims: roughly 93% of American adults have at least one marker of metabolic dysfunction, but most don't know it because standard checkups don't catch it early enough.
The problem: standard blood tests check fasting glucose, which only becomes abnormal very late in the disease progression. By the time your fasting glucose is "pre-diabetic," your body has been overproducing insulin for years to compensate. The check engine light comes on long after the engine is damaged.
Attia advocates for more sensitive tests. The oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) — drinking a glucose solution and measuring your response over 2 hours — reveals insulin resistance years before fasting glucose budges. He also looks at fasting insulin levels, HOMA-IR (a calculated insulin resistance score), and uric acid as early warning signals.
The good news: metabolic dysfunction is among the most reversible of the Four Horsemen. Exercise (especially Zone 2), reducing refined carbohydrates, improving sleep, and losing visceral fat can dramatically improve insulin sensitivity — often within weeks.
Source: Outlive: The Science and Art of Longevity — Peter Attia