Many people who have diabetes do not know that they have it, making it a serious problem. The American Diabetes Association claims that more than 16 million Americans currently suffer from the condition. Diabetics not only suffer from the disease itself, but can also suffer from its complications, which include heart attack, stroke, renal (kidney) failure, and the need for amputations. Sometimes death can also be a complication. It is estimated that almost 170,000 Americans die a year from the disease.
When a person has diabetes, it means that they either are not responding well to the insulin made naturally by their bodies, or their bodies do not produce sufficient insulin on their own. In a person without diabetes, ingested food is broken down into a sugar called glucose. The cells of the body use glucose as energy, but they can’t use it unless insulin assists the glucose in getting to cells. When there is a problem with the body’s insulin levels or supply, as in diabetes, glucose doesn’t get to cells. It stays in the bloodstream and if left there, it can accumulate and cause trauma to the heart, kidneys, eyes, blood vessels, and nerves.
Diabetes is not currently curable; however, it can be successfully treated. Complications can often be lessened or avoided with prompt diagnosis and treatment. Therefore, it is critical to recognize signs of diabetes as soon as they appear. The three kinds of diabetes generally strike at different times of life: Type I will generally develop during childhood or early adulthood, while Type II usually affects adults in their mid-forties or later, and gestational diabetes appears only in pregnant women.
Type 2 diabetes is the most common. About 95 percent of people who suffer from diabetes have this form of the disease. Although you may have no diabetes signs at all, if you or your children have any of the signs of diabetes, you should consult your doctor.
Vision changes, frequent urination, a constant feeling of thirst, fatigue or extreme weight loss are all signs of diabetes. While the disease can manifest in any person, Hispanics, African Americans and American Indians are more prone to develop it. There are also many risk factors for the condition, including having a child over 9 pounds, being over 45 years old, having a parent with the disease, or weighing 20% more than you should for your height and sex. Lack of exercise is another large risk factor for diabetes.
It is in young people that one usually notices the warnings of juvenile diabetes. These kids may be jumpy or listless or may not do well in their schoolwork. When the problem in kids is most serious, the initial signal can be the coma that indicates type 1 diabetes. Some of the other juvenile diabetes pointers are: urinating often, wetting the bed, tremendous thirst (particularly for sugary iced beverages), tremendous appetite, the loss of many pounds, incapacitating tiredness, impaired vision, shortness of temper, queasiness, and retching.
Many people who have diabetes do not know that they have it. Diabetics not only suffer from the disease itself, but can also suffer from complications, including heart attack, stroke, kidney failure, and amputations. Therefore, it’s critical to recognize diabetes signs as soon as they appear. Vision changes, frequent urination, constant thirst, fatigue, and extreme weight loss are all signs of diabetes. There are a variety of juvenile diabetes symptoms, including weight loss, unusual thirst for sweet or cold drinks, hunger beyond normal, weakness, feeling of tiredness, vision changes, irritability, frequent urination or bed wetting, and stomach upset.
- michael derad