When people discover that they or someone they know has a disease, the first they can typically do is become upset, or even to panic. If you or someone you know has diabetes, or think you might, becoming informed is the best course of action. Following are common questions people have about diabetes and easy-to-understand answers.
What is diabetes?
Diabetes is the fifth deadliest disease, according the American Diabetes Association. What's more, they say, of the more than 18 million Americans who have it, five million don't even know they have it!
These are scary statistics, but if you are one of the 9.3 million women with diabetes, or if you think you may have it or know someone who does, diabetes does not have to be that scary. Even though there is no known cure, it is a very management disease and it integrates easily into your life.
There are two types of diabetes. Type 1 is also called Juvenile-Onset Diabetes because it tends to appear at or near puberty. Type 2 is called Adult-Onset Diabetes and it tends to appear in people over 45 years of age. Type 2 diabetes is the most common diabetes. For every one person with Type 1 diabetes, there are about ten people with Type 2 diabetes.
For those of us who did not attend medical school, a basic explanation of diabetes goes like this: Insulin is a hormone produced by your pancreas that helps your body absorb glucose (sugar) which it uses for energy. Someone with diabetes cannot produce enough insulin to absorb glucose. The glucose then builds up in the bloodstream and overflows with water and electrolytes into the urine, where it leaves the body.
Because of the extra water entering the urinary system, a diabetic can find they urinate frequently. Frequent urination is one sign of diabetes. Other signs include excessive thirst and hunger, which is the body's natural way to replenish the lost electrolytes and glucose.
Who can get diabetes?
Diabetes is a disease that crosses ethnic and gender boundaries, but seems to affect women more than it affects men, and some ethnic groups more than others. If you are a Latino-American woman, or an African-American woman, or a Native American woman, you have the highest risk of being or becoming diabetic.
People will have a greater chance of becoming a Type 2 diabetic if they are inactive, overweight, or have family members with diabetes.
How do I know if I have diabetes?
Frequent urination, excessive hunger and thirst are the body's natural ways of trying to find balance in spite of the disease, so those are three excellent signs that you may have it. Additional symptoms include blurry vision, numbness in your joints, weight loss, fatigue, and nausea.
Remember, 5 million Americans don't even know they have diabetes! If you have a few of these symptoms, talk to your doctor.
How dangerous is it?
In extreme cases, Type 1 diabetics can enter a diabetic coma because of high levels of glucose in the blood, and both types may experience blindness, kidney failure and heart disease. The reality is that it is the fifth deadliest disease. But in spite of those frightening statistics and symptoms, people with diabetes can lead a very normal life.
What can I do if I have it?
Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes are treated in different ways, but the key to both is to maintain a healthy lifestyle, which is good advice for anyone, diabetic or not.
Diabetes can be treated with a combination of regular exercise, a careful diet, and medication. A careful diet includes eating smaller meals and snacks throughout the day, rather then three larger meals. Those smaller meals and snacks should contain complex sugars, which break down more slowly than simple sugars and cause a slower rise in blood sugar levels. People with Type 2 diabetes may find that diet and exercise alone is effective enough to control their diabetes. However, oral medication or even insulin injections may be necessary, especially as the Type 2 diabetic gets older.
There are many diabetes-sensitive cookbooks available to help as you shape your diet to be more appropriate for your health needs, and you can rest assured that there is enough variety in available foods that you won't be eating broccoli from now on.
Whether or not you have diabetes, a regular exercise regimen and a carefully selected diet is a better lifestyle choice anyway. If you feel you are at risk for diabetes, talk to your doctor and visit the American Diabetes Association website. Whether you are at risk or not, ensuring that you are living a healthy lifestyle is the best choice to make.
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