Diabetes has hidden dangers that begin before diagnosis and continue to worsen if certain steps are not taken to prevent the complications that are the real “killers” of diabetes.
Statistics show that there are approximately 18 million people with diabetes in America, both type 1 and type 2. It is amazing how many people, including diabetics, have no idea of the dangers a diabetic faces in his or her lifetime. A diabetic, all other things being equal, lives on average almost 10 years less than his or her non-diabetic counterpart.
Why do diabetics have a shorter lifespan than non-diabetics? The answer is both simple and complicated. Simple to explain in general terms, complicated in the medical sense of the term. Without following the complicated path in this article, I will try to give a simple and straightforward answer to the above question. Diabetics live shorter lives than non-diabetics due to the complications of diabetes.
What are the complications of diabetes?
Diabetes complications are chronic conditions that begin to affect the body of the person with diabetes. These complications are mainly caused by a condition that the medical community has called “advanced glycation end products”, which is simply an “excess of sugar” saturating the inside of the body’s cells. This condition, also known as AGE for short, includes coronary heart disease, vascular disease, blindness, kidney disease, retinopathy (blindness) and loss of feeling in the hands and feet (peripheral neuropathy).
Diabetes in its early stages produces no symptoms. Unless it is detected during a routine medical examination, a person with diabetes may go undiagnosed for years. It is during these years that the onset of diabetic complications can occur due to excess cell sugar (AGE). Statistics show that it is possible that more than 5 million people lead a normal life without being diagnosed with diabetes.
Are the complications of diabetes a certainty?
While the current consensus is that the formula for diabetic complications Diabetes + Time = Complications. This means that there is a much higher risk that a person with diabetes will be diagnosed with one or more diabetic complications over time. This is due in part to the way the individual monitors and controls his or her blood glucose levels.
Sharp rises and falls in blood sugar levels can be very distressing for the body and the excess sugar in the cells causes damage to the various nerves in the body as well as capillaries, veins and arteries. The data available to date show that excellent blood glucose control and an active lifestyle play an important role in preventing and/or slowing the onset of diabetes complications.
The different types of diabetes
There are two types of diabetes – type 1 and type 2. Type 1 affects children and young adults and is characterized by the inability of the pancreas to produce insulin, a hormone that breaks down sugars and starches while turning them into energy. Type 2 usually occurs later in adult life and is characterized by the inability of the pancreas to produce enough insulin due to several factors, obesity being one of them.
Approximately 10% of people with diabetes are type 1, while 90% of those without diabetes are type 2. The main difference between the two is that type 1 diabetics are completely dependent on insulin and receive daily injections, while type 2 diabetics are those who require insulin injections, while the others can rely on oral medication and/or changes in diet and exercise.
Risk factors surrounding diabetes
There are several risk factors that can push a prediabetic to become a true diabetic.
1) Being overweight.
2) a family history of diabetes,
3) lack of adequate exercise.
4) a history of gestational diabetes (which occurs during pregnancy and usually disappears after delivery).
5) certain ethnic groups
People over 45 years of age who have one or more of the risk factors listed above should be screened for diabetes every year, preferably at an annual medical examination. It has been shown that people with these risk factors make up the majority of cases of diabetes diagnosed each year.
What are the tests that help diagnose cases of diabetes?
There are two main tests to determine if a person has diabetes.
1) be overweight.
2) a family history of diabetes,
3) lack of adequate exercise.
4) a history of gestational diabetes (which occurs during pregnancy and usually disappears after delivery).
5) certain ethnic groups
People over 45 years of age who have one or more of the risk factors listed above should be screened for diabetes every year, preferably at an annual medical examination. It has been shown that people with these risk factors make up the majority of cases of diabetes diagnosed each year.
What are the tests that help diagnose cases of diabetes?
There are two main tests to determine whether or not a person has glucose intolerance:
1) Fasting blood glucose test
2) Oral glucose tolerance test
Both of these tests can determine glucose intolerance, which is when blood sugar levels are higher than what is considered normal. However, this is not always an indication of diabetes.
Can the onset of diabetes be prevented?
People with the above risk factors can go a long way towards preventing the development of type 2 diabetes by making significant lifestyle changes. What is a lifestyle change? Changing unhealthy diets to more blood sugar-friendly diets, getting enough exercise to help compensate for increased blood sugar levels, and keeping the body healthy and losing weight, especially if you are considered obese by the medical community.
If you are prediabetic, you should follow a strict diabetic diet. Ask your health care professional to suggest a diet that meets these criteria and limit cakes, candy, cookies and other simple sugar products. Eat small, nutritious meals and eat five times a day instead of only three.
If you have already been diagnosed with diabetes, you should follow the same diet under the careful supervision of your healthcare professional. Keep your cholesterol, blood pressure and blood glucose levels within appropriate limits and have your eyes checked every year.
Diabetes can contribute to blindness, kidney and heart disease. Complications caused nearly 70,000 deaths in 2000.
Diabetes should be feared more than any other epidemic because it is a silent killer and the result can be disastrous.
