What You Need to Know About Diabetes
There’s a lot of misinformation out there surrounding diabetes, which is absolutely no help at all when you’re living with it or know someone who is. Confusion over Type 1, Type 2, what it means to be diagnosed as pre-diabetic or to be hypoglycemic, and if they have anything to do with diabetes at all has served to muddle what information there is. For those who are living with diabetes or have family members who are, we’ve put together this document to help clarify some common misconceptions.
What Is Diabetes?
First off, it will help to explain exactly what diabetes is, to begin with. Diabetes is a chronic disease in which the body has malfunctions pertaining to the processing and utilization of glucose. The core of this issue is insulin, a substance the body produces naturally to aid glucose’s journey into your cells. Without insulin, your body isn’t capable of getting sufficient levels of glucose into your cells, and that can cause significant problems, including high blood sugar. Elevated levels of blood sugar can lead to a host of complications related to diabetes, including:
- Damage to Eyes, Kidneys, Skin, and the Heart
- Nerve Damage
- Wounds not healing properly
- Blurry Vision
- Accelerated heartbeat
- Headaches
- Breathing problems
- Dehydration
- Seizures
- Falling Unconscious
- Death
These conditions are caused either when the body has insufficient blood sugar (Hypoglycemia) or experiences ketoacidosis, which happens when your body isn’t able to properly utilize sugar.
Diabetes Type 1 and Type 2 – What are they?
These terms are used to specify precisely what your body’s insulin issue is. In those who are suffering from Type 1 Diabetes, the body is incapable of producing insulin, making it extremely difficult for your body to get sufficient fuel to the cells to keep them running. Type 2 diabetes speaks of a failure of your body to produce appropriate levels of insulin, or that it doesn’t react to insulin like it should. Both of these conditions can be extremely dangerous if left untreated, and type 2 diabetes has the potential to become type 1 over a long enough time span in some patients.
What Causes Diabetes?
There’s a lot of rumors out there surrounding what can cause diabetes, and parents, in particular, like to warn against the consumption of too much sugar as a leading cause. While there is some truth to that in that being overweight can increase your likelihood of getting diabetes, sugar itself and the consumption thereof are not directly causal factors. What does cause diabetes isn’t well understood, but in Type 1 the body destroys the cells that produce insulin as an autoimmune response. Type 2 diabetes has no direct known cause, though inactivity and weight gain are thought to contribute heavily.
If you have more questions about diabetes then you should pick up the phone and make an appointment to speak to Dr. Trang D Nguyen at Conroe Family Doctor.
