Diabetes Information

 Diabetes is a disease which more than twenty million people in the United States suffer from.  Diabetes is manageable and treatable, however, if left untreated, diabetes can lead to serious medical conditions, coma, and even death.

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes is a disorder where the body does not produce any, or enough insulin.  Insulin is a hormone produced by the body to turn the glucose in the blood to energy.  When a person suffers from diabetes, their body cannot make this change and the glucose, or sugar levels in their bodies become too high.

What Are Some Secondary Effects of Diabetes?

If a diabetic allows their blood sugar level to get too high and stay too high, there are several different problems that it can cause.

If diabetes goes untreated, it can cause diabetic retinopathy.  This is a disease of the eye where the blood vessels which nourish the retina become constricted.  When the blood cannot properly get to the retina, blurry vision and even blindness can occur.

When a person has diabetes, it could lead to feet problems.  When a person's diabetes gets out of control the nerves in the feet can become paralyzed.  This can make it difficult to feel pain.  If a person who has diabetes has a blister or a sore on their foot, they will not be able to feel it.  This can cause much worse problems. 

Diabetes can also lead to heart problems.  When a person's blood sugar gets too high, their arteries can become constricted and the blood cannot pump to the heart properly.  Other complications of diabetes are kidney problems and gangrene.  It is very important that a diabetic keep a close eye on their blood sugar at all times.

Who is at Risk for Diabetes?

One of the main risk factors of diabetes is genetics.  If someone in a person immediate family suffers from diabetes, there is a very good chance that they will develop diabetes as well.  If one parent suffers from diabetes, there is a fifty percent chance that their child will develop this disease as well.  If both parents suffer from diabetes, there is an eighty percent that they will develop the disease.

Obesity is another risk factor for diabetes.  It is important that a person keep their weight down if they want to avoid diabetes.  Millions of overweight or obese people develop diabetes every year.

Pregnancy is also a risk factor.  Some women who are not diabetic will become diabetic during pregnancy.  This is called gestational diabetes.  This condition usually goes away after the baby is born.  All pregnant women are given the Fasting Plasma Glucose Test in the first or second trimesters during pregnancy.

What Tests are Done to Determine Diabetes?

There are a couple tests which doctors use to determine if a person has diabetes or not.  One test that is done is called the Fasting Plasma Glucose Test.  Many doctors as well as the American Diabetes Association suggest this test because it is the fastest and the least expensive of the two tests. 

 It is also the easiest to perform.  If a person takes the Fasting Plasma Glucose Test and gets a level between 120 and 125 mg/dl, this indicates pre diabetes.  Pre diabetes is when a person does not have a score high enough to be diabetes but too high that diabetes cannot be ruled out.  A fasting blood glucose score of 126 or higher indicates diabetes. 

Another test used to determine if a person is diabetic is the Oral Glucose Tolerance test.  The OGTT is performed after the person has fasted then two hours after drinking a glucose rich beverage.  If the two-hour blood glucose level is between 140 mg/dl and 199 mg/dl, the person has pre diabetes.  If the fasting blood glucose level is 200 mg/dl or over they have diabetes. 

How Do I Test My Blood Glucose Level?

If a person has either diabetes or pre diabetes, it is necessary for them to check their blood glucose more than once a day.  For a person with pre diabetes, it is important to test because pre diabetes could become diabetes at any time. 

When a person has diabetes, it is necessary for them to test their blood sugar a few times a day to see if any type of medication is needed at that time.

A person with diabetes or pre diabetes does not have to go see a doctor to test their diabetes, it is done right in the home.  A diabetic is taught by their physician how to do a "finger stick."  This is when a person pricks their finger with a tiny, one use needle.  This needle produces a tiny hole where just a small amount blood comes out.  The blood is then put on a small strip which is slid into the machine which will read you levels.  This will tell you whether or not you need to take any medication.

What Can I Do to Prevent Serious Diabetic Conditions?

There are a few things that a person can do to prevent their diabetes from becoming deadly.

The first thing that a person can do is watch their diet. Diet makes a big difference in a person's blood sugar.  Doctors suggest a certain diet for diabetics to keep their blood sugar down.  Carbohydrates should make up between sixty and seventy percent of a person's daily calories.  Twenty percent of a person's calories should be protein.  Doctors say that in order for a person to keep their blood sugar at a safe level that they should be sure that no more than twenty to thirty percent of their daily calorie intake be made up of fats and starches.  Following a strict diet can keep a person's blood sugar at a safe, steady level.

Diabetes is a very serious disease but with proper care it does not have to be.  Keeping an eye on your blood sugar and watching your diet can mean the difference between being a healthy diabetic or not.