Diabetes

Overview of Diabetes

Diabetes is a complex disease. Different types of diabetes, a variety of risk factors and warning signs can make it difficult to understand. But here are some basic things about diabetes that everyone should know!

When there is too much sugar circulating in your blood stream you can be sure you have DIABETES MELLITUS, or simply diabetes. Sugar, also known as glucose, is an important and necessary fuel for our bodies. It is produced naturally by both the liver and the kidneys; however, we get the most sugar from the foods we eat.

Insulin is a hormone made by the pancreas. Insulin is a hormone that turns the foods you eat into energy. If your body cannot turn food into energy, not only will your cells be starved for energy, you will also build up glucose (sugar) in your blood also known as hyperglycaemia. Over the long-term high glucose levels are associated with damage to the body and failure of various organs and tissues.

Diabetes affects the manner in which the body handles digested carbohydrates. If neglected, diabetes can cause serious health complications, ranging from blindness to kidney failure.

The approach in managing Diabetes should be more proactive than reactive. The present scenario of treatment in India is opposite. Along with keeping patients' blood glucose levels low, we put in efforts to enhance their overall quality of life.

Patient education is a crucial factor in managing Diabetes. DHC keeps the patient at the centre of this process. Instead of forbidding certain food items completely, like sweets, we focus on balanced diets moderated according to the patient's individual needs.

You have got one life to live. Live Healthy!!

Types of Diabetes

Patient education is an integral part of treatment at Diabetes & Hypertension Clinic. From small details to consequential complications, we make you aware of every aspect of Diabetes. There are three main types of diabetes:

Type 2 Diabetes occurs when the body does not produce enough insulin or cannot properly use insulin. Often the pancreas is producing more than average amounts of insulin, but the cells of the body have become unresponsive to its effect due to the chronically high level of the hormone. Eventually the pancreas may exhaust its over-active secretion of the hormone, and insulin levels fall to below normal.

Type 2 is generally found in adults; is hereditary, but it is unlikely to develop in normal-weight individuals eating a low- or moderate-carbohydrate diet. However an alarmingly growing number of adolescent are now diagnosed with type 2 Diabetes. One of the main causes is overweight. Type 2 Diabetes may remain undetected for many years and the diagnosis is often made when a complication appears or a routine blood or urine glucose test is done.

Though Type 2 diabetes is not fatal within a matter of months, it can lead to health complications over several years and cause severe disability and premature death.

Type 1 Diabetes is caused by a total lack of insulin that, in turn, produces high blood glucose levels. Type 1 is most often is seen in children. The reason this occurs is not fully understood. People with this form of diabetes need injections of insulin every day in order to control the levels of glucose in their blood. If you have Type 1, your health care provider might recommend scheduled, nutritious meals, exercise, medication, and frequent blood sugar level tests.

Gestational Diabetes occurs in pregnant women that have high blood glucose levels. After the pregnancy is over, most women will have normal blood sugars again; however, they remain at risk for diabetes. 20-50% will be diagnosed with diabetes over the next 5-10 years and gestational diabetes is likely to recur during subsequent pregnancies.

Early signs of Diabetes

Diabetes' biggest enemy is Early Detection, and knowledge of the warning signs is your greatest weapon against the disease! Familiarize with the warning signs and symptoms of Diabetes yourself to get medical intervention at the earliest.

The main symptom of diabetes is the lack of insulin activity or the inability for the body to create insulin.

Other symptoms include:

1. Rise in urine production, leading to an urge to constantly urinate
2. Blurred Vision
3. Excessive hunger
4. Extreme weight loss
5. Increased exhaustion, low energy

The onset of these symptoms may be gradual or sudden. Generally over time, they persist to the point that the patient seeks medical advice. It is then that diabetes is diagnosed. Diabetes can only be diagnosed by a health care provider.

Now that you are familiar with the warning signs of diabetes, wouldn't this be a good time for you to test yourself for Diabetes? If you think you may have diabetes, you should seek urgent medical evaluation.

It's very easy to do, will only take a couple of minutes, and may save you and your family a lifetime of unnecessary complications.

Complications that stem from Diabetes

When it comes to diseases, diabetes is one of the most awful. Diabetes is a chronic health condition that potentially has a host of scary and weakening complications that can greatly affect a person's capability to live a normal life. Did you know diabetes affects almost every part of the human body?

Heart Disease and Strokes

• One of the most common causes of heart attack is diabetes mellitus and in majority of diabetes patients cause of death is heart attack.
• Adults with diabetes have heart disease death rates about 2 to 4 times higher than adults without diabetes.
• The risk for stroke is 2 to 4 times higher among people with diabetes

Other additional factors are

• Obesity-over weight.
• High Blood Pressure.
• Smoking.
• Acute pain in legs, foot and arm as Blood vessels of legs, foot and arms get narrowed down due to cholesterol deposition this is seen more frequently in diabetics who are smoker.

Most of the Warning Signs of diabetes come on gradually and are not particularly noticed right away. This tends to prolong the length of time for the disease to develop and possibly leads to unnecessary complications. This is why we at DHC put's up so much emphasis on early detection and conduct extensive public awareness programs.

Eye Disease (DIABETIC RETINOPATHY)

The most sensitive organ of the body is the Eyes. Diabetes is a fatal disease which affects eyes like any other organ of body. Diabetes can cause complete blindness.

The damage that is causes to the eyes depends on the duration of Diabetes. For e.g.: If diabetes is there for more than 15 years eyes are definitely involved.

Eyes are more involved in Type I diabetes than Type II diabetes. Other factor which is responsible for eye involvement is uncontrolled Blood Sugar. Prolonged period of uncontrolled diabetes causes more danger to eyes.

Most common symptoms are

• Itching in eyes, irritation.
• Watering, painful eye movements.
• Headache, redness, diminished vision.
• Double vision, black spots in front of eyes.
• Frequent change in power of glasses.
• Paralysis of eye muscles leading to double vision or squint. - Cataract, and sudden loss of vision-due to bleeding in eye or retinal detachment.

Best and simple way to keep the diabetes under control is by strict diet control and regular use of anti-diabetic medicines.

• All diabetic patients should have regular complete eye check up at least once in a year.
• Diabetics who smoke are at a higher risk for loss of eye sight.
• Blood pressure should be kept under control.

Gestational Diabetes

Gestational diabetes happens when you have too much sugar (glucose) in your blood during pregnancy. Your blood sugar levels can go up when your body isn't producing enough of a hormone called insulin. Insulin helps: the muscles and tissues in your body to use blood sugar for energy.

Gestational diabetes begins during pregnancy and disappears following delivery. Gestational diabetes may most commonly occur in women who have

• Increased risk of obesity
• Have family history of diabetes
• Have given birth previously to a very large infant, a stillbirth, or a child with a birth defect.
• Have too much amniotic fluid (polyhydramnios).
• Women who are older than 25 are at greater risk than younger individuals.

Although a history of sugar in the urine is often included in the list of risk factors, this is not a reliable indicator of who will develop diabetes during pregnancy. Some pregnant women with perfectly normal blood sugar levels will occasionally have sugar detected in their urine.

The complications of gestational diabetes are manageable and preventable. The key to prevention is careful control of blood sugar levels.

Kidney Disease (DIABETIC NEPHROPATHY)

Kidney disease is much more common in people with diabetes than in those without diabetes and is caused by damage to small blood vessels in the kidneys leading to the kidneys becoming less efficient or to fail altogether.

Too much glucose, also called sugar, in your blood from diabetes damages your kidneys' filters. If the filters are damaged, a protein called albumin, which you need to stay healthy, leaks out of your blood and into your urine. Damaged kidneys do not do a good job of filtering wastes and extra fluid from your blood. The wastes and extra fluid buildup in your blood and make you sick.

Diabetes is a leading cause of kidney disease. Diabetic kidney disease is the medical term for kidney disease caused by diabetes. Diabetic kidney disease affects both kidneys at the same time. Maintaining near normal levels of blood glucose and blood pressure can greatly reduce the risk of kidney disease.

Nerve Disease (DIABETIC NEUROPATHY):

Diabetic neuropathies are a family of nerve disorders caused by diabetes. People with diabetes can, over time, develop nerve damage throughout the body. Diabetes can cause damage to the nerves throughout the body when blood glucose and blood pressure are too high. Among the most commonly affected areas are the extremities, in particular the feet.

Some people with nerve damage have no symptoms. Others may have symptoms such as pain, tingling, or numbness-loss of feeling-in the hands, arms, feet, and legs. Nerve problems can occur in every organ system.

Diabetic neuropathy can be classified as peripheral, autonomic, proximal, or focal. Each affects different parts of the body in various ways.

• Peripheral neuropathy, the most common type of diabetic neuropathy, causes pain or loss of feeling in the toes, feet, legs, hands, and arms.
• Autonomic neuropathy causes changes in digestion, bowel and bladder function, sexual response, and perspiration. It can also affect the nerves that serve the heart and control blood pressure, as well as nerves in the lungs and eyes. Autonomic neuropathy can also cause hypoglycemia unawareness, a condition in which people no longer experience the warning symptoms of low blood glucose levels.
• Proximal neuropathy causes pain in the thighs, hips, or buttocks and leads to weakness in the legs.
• Focal neuropathy results in the sudden weakness of one nerve or a group of nerves, causing muscle weakness or pain. Any nerve in the body can be affected.

People with diabetes carry a risk of amputation that may be more than 25 times greater than that of people without diabetes. However, with comprehensive management, a large proportion of amputations related to diabetes can be prevented. Even when amputation takes place, the remaining leg and the person's life can be saved by good follow-up care from a multidisciplinary foot team. People with diabetes should regularly examine their feet.

Do not worry. We at DHC are there to guide you and answer your queries!

Precautions that lead the way to healthy living

If you already have diabetes, of course you're going to want to have a dialog with our doctor, and we've got some great medicines, but regular exercise and weight management are critically important.

If you want to lower your risk of diabetes, it's critically important that you maintain a proper body weight. So if you're currently in the proper body weight, and that is a body mass index of less than 25, maintaining that is critically important. You've increased your risk of diabetes 4,000 percent by the time you're obese. So, maintaining a proper body weight is underestimated and very important in terms of lowering your risk of diabetes.

Other precautionary measures that should be taken by Diabetics are:

• Control Blood Pressure.
• Monitor swelling over legs and feet and report to Doctor.
• Get regular sugar and cholesterol examinations and keep records.
• Get X-Ray chest done once in a year.
• Get E.C.G. done once in a year.
• If one gets discomfort in chest while walking or after food should undergo stress test/tread mill test so that cardiac status can be evaluated.

Certain Bad Companions of Diabetes that tend to worsen health are:

• Hypertension (High Blood Pressure)
• Dyslipidaemia (High Cholesterol and Triglyceride Levels)
• Smoking
• Obesity (Over Weight)

However, Nutritious meals, followed by a strict exercise routine plan followed under our guidance may aid you in controlling your Diabetes. Diabetes will never truly go away, but with proper nutrition, exercise and prescribed medications, it can be controlled. We lead you the way to follow healthy living!!

Early signs of Diabetes

Diabetes' biggest enemy is Early Detection, and knowledge of the warning signs is your greatest weapon against the disease! Familiarize with the warning signs and symptoms of Diabetes yourself to get medical intervention at the earliest.

The main symptom of diabetes is the lack of insulin activity or the inability for the body to create insulin.

Other symptoms include:

1. Rise in urine production, leading to an urge to constantly urinate
2. Blurred Vision
3. Excessive hunger
4. Extreme weight loss
5. Increased exhaustion, low energy

The onset of these symptoms may be gradual or sudden. Generally over time, they persist to the point that the patient seeks medical advice. It is then that diabetes is diagnosed. Diabetes can only be diagnosed by a health care provider.

Now that you are familiar with the warning signs of diabetes, wouldn't this be a good time for you to test yourself for Diabetes? If you think you may have diabetes, you should seek urgent medical evaluation.

It's very easy to do, will only take a couple of minutes, and may save you and your family a lifetime of unnecessary complications.