Can Skin Tags Be a Sign of Diabetes?

Increased thirst, urination, or high blood sugar readings are all known signs of diabetes, but the disease can also make an appearance on your skin.

Skin tags are one of the little-known skin manifestations of diabetes, particularly diabetes mellitus, or type 2 diabetes.

This article will explore what skin tags are, why you might develop them with diabetes, and what you can do to eliminate them.

What Are Skin Tags?

Skin tags (acrochordons) are typically benign (harmless) growths the color of your skin or sometimes darker. These soft bits of tissue can be 1 millimeter to 20 millimeters across and are usually connected to your skin's surface by a small stalk.

Most of the time, skin tags develop with no other symptoms and appear around the neck and armpits; there doesn't have to be a specific cause for skin tags. In fact, it's estimated that between 50% and 60% of adults will develop at least one skin tag by the time they reach their 40s.

Other conditions or diseases linked to a higher prevalence of skin tags include:

• Obesity
• Cardiovascular disease
• Abnormal lipid (fat) levels
• Genetics
  

Are Skin Tags a Sign of Diabetes?

While skin tags can appear without any specific cause, they tend to occur more often in people with diabetes and insulin resistance, when muscle, fat, and liver cells don't respond well to insulin and you build up a tolerance to it.

Several skin changes can appear with diabetes. These include:

• Cherry angiomas (noncancerous growths formed by clumped together blood vessels)
• Dry skin
• Itchy skin
• Thickened skin
• Skin discoloration (acanthosis nigricans)
• Wounds that don't heal

While skin tags generally aren't always a sign of diabetes, one study found that skin tags were the most common skin condition in people with diabetes.

Treatments and Management of Skin Tags

It's not necessary to treat skin tags, but they have the potential to grow in size over time—especially in areas of the body where there is a lot of friction, like skinfolds.

If you decide to have a skin tag removed, it can be cut off—or excised—in your healthcare provider's office. Special precautions may be required if the skin tag is particularly large or in a difficult-to-treat location.

Potential complications of skin tag removal can include:

• Infection
• Scarring
• Pain
• Irritation
  

Removing skin tags at home is also possible, but you should always consult your healthcare provider first.

If you start noticing skin tags and think they may be a sign of early diabetes, it's important to see your primary care provider for a thorough examination. Early diagnosis and treatment of diabetes can help you quickly control your blood sugar levels and potentially prevent other, more serious complications and side effects.

When to See Your Healthcare Provider

Skin tags aren't usually a cause for concern, but they can be a red flag for other things happening inside the body. If you have skin tags—especially many of them—talk to your healthcare provider about screening you for conditions like diabetes.

If diabetes is the underlying cause of your skin tags, getting a diagnosis and starting treatment as soon as possible is essential to avoid complications.

Summary

Skin tags are benign skin growths that most adults will develop at some point in their lifetime. However, there is a chance that a condition like diabetes can trigger these growths. Talk to your healthcare provider about your risk for diabetes if you have skin tags.

A Word From Verywell

If you have multiple skin tags or any other symptoms of diabetes, make an appointment to see your primary healthcare provider for a diabetes screening. Uncontrolled or undiagnosed diabetes can lead to serious side effects and complications that can be preventable if caught early.