According to a recent article in the Journal of Hypertension, a simple urine test may offer a highly sensitive way to screen for diabetes and the risk for developing the disease.

The test offers a simple way to detect albumin in the urine sample.  Albumin is one of the main proteins present the blood and, normally, is not filtered by the kidneys.  Normally, it is not present in the urine.

However, during the stage of pre-diabetes, abnormal amounts of albumin leak out into the urine and are detected by a simple test.

The presence of albumin the urine indicated a 97% greater risk of developing diabetes even in the absence of other risk factors. Also, elevated levels of albumin in the urine might predispose to arterial damage and insulin resistance during later stages of the disease.

Diabetes is one of the main causes of erectile dysfunction, and earlier detection might allow prevention of the development of ED.