Diabetes

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes is a disease characterized by a malfunctioning metabolism and high blood sugar level. Our metabolism is the process by which our bodies use digested food for movement, growth and repair. Most foods that go into our stomachs are broken down by digestive juices into a sugar called glucose. Glucose is the substance that fuels our bodies.

After a meal, glucose is absorbed from the intestines into the bloodstream. Then, the pancreas releases the right amount of the hormone insulin into our blood in response to the detected increase in blood sugar. This insulin aids in the absorption of the glucose from the blood stream into the body cells.

The pancreas of people with diabetes produces little to no insulin. Therefore the glucose builds up and overflows into the urine and passes out of the body. This is how the body loses its main source of fuel even though the bloodstream contains sufficient amounts of the glucose.

The Types of Diabetes

There are 3 types of diabetes: Type 1, Type 2 and Gestational diabetes. About 5-10% of American diabetics are Type 1 while the remaining 90% are Type 2. Each type follows a different cause, severity of symptoms and management.

Type 1 Diabetes is usually (but not always) found in children and young adults. Thus, it is also termed juvenile diabetes. Diabetes is an autoimmune disease where the body's natural system is fighting against another part of the body. In the case of type 1 diabetes, the system attacks the insulin-producing cells and destroys them. Therefore, the pancreas can produce little to no insulin. People who have type 1 diabetes are known as insulin-dependent, which means they need daily injections of insulin to live.

Type 2 diabetes is usually (but not always) diagnosed in adults over the age of 45. In type 2 diabetes, either the person is not making enough insulin, or the body is resistant to insulin and cannot use it properly.

Gestational diabetes occurs during pregnancy: 2-4 percent of all pregnant women have gestational diabetes. If a woman has gestational diabetes, she has about a 40 percent chance of having type 2 diabetes later in her life.

Signs and Symptoms of Diabetes

As many as 50% (one-half) of persons with type 2 diabetes are unaware that they have the disease. For this reason, it is particularly important to pay attention to the signs and symptoms of diabetes and its risk factors.

Some of the symptoms of either type 1 or type 2 diabetes are:
• Extreme fatigue. We all get tired at times, but diabetes triggers a more severe fatigue than normal.
• Unexplained weight loss. This is because diabetics are unable to process many of the calories they consume. Losing sugar and water in the urine also contributes to the weight loss.
• Extreme thirst. Diabetes develops high blood sugar levels and the body tries to compensate by diluting the blood, which tells the brain the person is thirsty.
• Excessive urination. It is another way that the body gets rid of the extra sugar in the system. But this can also lead to dehydration.
• Poor wound healing. This is the hardest to deal with. Wounds that heal slowly, along with infections that are not easily remedied, can lead to ulcers and loss of limbs.
• Dry and itchy skin, loss of feeling in your feet or tingling in your feet and blurry eyesight are additional symptoms to look out for.

Symptoms of type 1 diabetes often come on suddenly and are severely dramatic. The extra stress of diabetes can lead to something called diabetic ketoacidosis. Symptoms of ketoacidosis may include nausea and vomiting, which may also lead to dehydration and serious problems with the blood levels of potassium. This could lead to a diabetic coma and ultimately death. In type 2 diabetes, symptoms develop more slowly, and some persons never have any symptoms of the disease.

It is extremely important that if you suspect you or your child to have symptoms of diabetes, that you visit your doctor for check-up. If the tests are positive, it is not yet too late. With careful monitoring and care, diabetics can live long healthy lives

Managing Diabetes in Patients

As of 2007, there is no cure for either type 1 or type 2 diabetes. This may seem like a dim outlook for many people, but the fact is that even though there is no cure, there certainly are ways to manage your diabetes.

Proper management can give you many years of healthy living. It starts with a visit to the doctor. Confirm if you have diabetes and what type you have. Then know as much information as possible about it and take action.

All management begins with controlling the glucose cycle. There are 2 factors that affect the glucose cycle. The first is the entry of glucose into the bloodstream and the second is the level of insulin into the blood stream to control the blood glucose level.

Proper management of the first factor requires a complete lifestyle change, which may involve diet and exercise. However, this should first be discussed with your physician as glucose levels are very sensitive to both diet and exercise

Proper management of the second factor requires frequent, sometimes multi-daily, checks of glucose in the blood. Today, it is easier to measure the blood sugar level. Glucose meters are readily available and are quite easy to use armed with a little practice and patience.

With a small drop of blood to the testing strip attached to the glucose meter, the user is given the number, which represents their blood sugar level. This in turn will let the user know if and when insulin is needed.

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