Lowering blood sugar levels in people with prediabetes reduces the risk of death from cardiovascular disease by 58%, according to researchers from King’s College London. The study results were published in The Lancet Diabetes & Endocrinology (LDE).

The research is based on health data from participants in two long-term studies—the U.S.-based DPPOS and China’s DaQingDPOS. Both studies followed volunteers with prediabetes for several decades. Prediabetes is a condition in which blood sugar levels are elevated but not high enough to be diagnosed as type 2 diabetes.

The authors found that so-called remission of prediabetes—a state in which blood sugar levels return to the normal range—is associated with long-term cardiovascular protection. Participants who managed to normalize their blood sugar had a 58% lower risk of cardiovascular death or hospitalization due to heart failure. The risk of heart attack, stroke, and other major cardiovascular events was reduced by 42%.

According to the researchers, the protective effect persisted for decades after glucose levels returned to normal, indicating a lasting impact of metabolic changes rather than a short-term effect of intervention. The study also showed that weight loss or increased physical activity alone does not necessarily guarantee a reduction in cardiovascular risk if blood glucose levels do not return to normal.