What You Need To Know About Diabetes
Diabetes is a chronic disease in which your body has high amounts of blood sugar. With type 1 diabetes, which mainly occurs in children and young adults, your body can’t make enough insulin.
Type 2 diabetes is much more common in adults and occurs when your body develops insulin resistance. Keeping your condition under control is very important to prevent serious complications.
Causes Of Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes develops when your pancreas is unable to produce insulin or only able to make very little of it. This happens when your immune system destroys the cells that usually make insulin.
Type 2 diabetes develops when your cells become unable to handle insulin, which leads to excessive amounts of glucose or blood sugar in your bloodstream.
The underlying causes of both types is not known, although scientists believe it is due to genetics and environmental factors.
Symptoms Of Diabetes
If you have type 1 diabetes, the symptoms often happen quickly and can be severe. Type 2 diabetes symptoms tend to develop slowly. The common signs of both types of diabetes include:
- Excessive thirst
- Increased hunger
- Sudden weight loss
- Vision problems
- Fatigue
- Urinating frequently
- Sores that take a long time to heal
Complications
If diabetes is left untreated, serious complications can occur. These include cardiovascular disease, damage to your nerves which can lead to numbness, blindness and infections in your feet.
Your risk of suffering from gum infections, kidney disease and Alzheimer’s disease is also higher.
Medical Treatments
If you have type 1 diabetes, you will need to use an insulin pump or do insulin injections on a regular basis. Your doctor will also want you to check your blood sugar levels frequently.
If you have type 2 diabetes, you will need to monitor your blood sugar levels as often as your doctor recommends. You might need to take long-acting or rapid-acting insulin if you are unable to control your blood sugar levels through lifestyle changes.
You might also need to take prescription medications to help your pancreas make insulin or prevent your liver from releasing glucose.
Lifestyle Changes
Whether you have type 1 or type 2 diabetes, you will need to make some lifestyle changes to live with this chronic condition.
Your diet should include a limited number of complex carbohydrates, vegetables, fruits and healthy sources of protein, such as grilled chicken.
You should avoid eating foods with a lot of sugar, simple carbohydrates and saturated fat. Staying physically fit can help you control your blood sugar levels, so it’s important to make sure you get regular exercise.
Since high blood sugar levels can interfere with your immune system, stay up-to-date on vaccinations.
Take care of your feet, teeth and eyes to prevent complications. Go for a yearly physical and eye exam to make sure that you are in good shape.
Although diabetes can be a challenging condition to live with, making the effort to take good care of yourself and follow the recommended medical treatment is well worth it.
Even though you have a chronic condition, it doesn’t have to be a burden to you. Once you get used to your treatment routine and adapt to the lifestyle changes you need to make, you should have an easier time living with diabetes.
