What you need to know about diabetes

What is diabetes ?

Diabetes is a disease in which your body does not produce enough insulin (the hormone that turns sugar into energy) or doesn’t know how to properly use the insulin your body produces.

Insulin is important because it acts as a gatekeeper allowing glucose (sugar) to enter your cells to be converted into energy. Without insulin, sugar builds up in the blood and causes high blood sugar, which can lead to serious health problems like heart attack, stroke, kidney disease, nerve damage and diabetic ketoacidosis (a potentially fatal blood chemical imbalance), coma or even death.

What are the types of diabetes?

There are three main types of diabetes.

• Type 1 Diabetes is a lifelong autoimmune disease in which your immune system attacks the cells in your body that produce insulin. No one knows why this happens, but it stops your body from producing insulin. You will need to take injectable insulin to help manage your blood sugar levels. About 1 in 100 people with diabetes have type 1. It is usually diagnosed children and young adults but can develop at any age.

• Type 2 This is when your cells don’t respond normally to insulin, also called insulin resistance. Your pancreas has to work very hard to produce more insulin for the cells to respond. But over time, he can no longer keep up. Eventually, too much sugar circulates in the blood, which can lead to vision loss and kidney disease, among other serious health problems. Type 2 is the most common form of diabetes and is usually diagnosed in adults. About 9 out of 10 people with diabetes have type 2 diabetes.

• Gestational Diabetes develops during pregnancy. Similar to type 2, changes in your body cause insulin resistance, which causes high blood sugar. The good news is that most people with gestational diabetes return to normal blood sugar levels after the baby is born. But it’s important to note that people with gestational diabetes are at high risk of type 2 diabetes later in life. In fact, about half of women with gestational diabetes will one day develop type 2 diabetes.

What is prediabetes?

Prediabetes This is when your blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not so high that you’ll be diagnosed with type 2. You may not have any symptoms — 4 out of 5 people People with prediabetes don’t know they have it, but prediabetes puts you at high risk for type 2 diabetes and other diabetes-related problems.

Prediabetes is very common. About 1 in 3 adults in the United States have prediabetes. Lifestyle choices like eating healthy foods and being physically active can help control blood sugar and reduce the risk of developing diabetes.

What are the risk factors for diabetes?

Although risk factors may vary depending on the type of diabetes, common risk factors include:

• A family history of diabetes
• Age (be over 45)
• High blood pressure
• Being overweight or obese
• A non-active lifestyle

Breed also plays a role when it comes to type and disease. White people have the highest rate of type 1 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is more common among blacks, Hispanics, Native Americans, Asians, and Pacific Islanders than whites.

When it comes to income and education, the 2022 National Diabetes Statistical Report reported data on diabetes by income for the first time. The report shows that diabetes is also associated with poverty. And people with less education were more likely to have diabetes.

What are the symptoms of diabetes?

Diabetes symptoms vary depending on the type and level of your blood sugar. To make things even more complicated, some people have no symptoms at all.

When people experience symptoms, they include:

• Weightloss
• Fatigue
• Weakness
• Blurry vision
• Pee more often
• Increased thirst
• Mood changes
• Slow healing wounds

How is diabetes different for women and men?

Diabetes affects slightly more men than women. But health problems related to diabetes are more serious in women. For example, people with diabetes are at high risk of heart disease. But this risk increases by approximately four times for women with diabetes, compared to twice for men with the disease.

Read: The link between diabetes, cardiovascular disease and women’s health >>

Women with diabetes are also at higher risk of diabetes-related health problems, including:

• Blindness
• Kidney disease
• Depression

In addition to these health problems, diabetes can affect the reproductive system.

An example: Women with diabetes are at high risk for yeast infections and urinary tract infections. This is because high blood sugar can lead to poor circulation and affect the ability to fight infections.

Diabetes can also affect periods. You may have heavy or longer periods, and hormonal changes can cause blood sugar fluctuations.

For many women, menopause causes weight gain, hot flashes and night sweats – anything that can affect blood sugar levels and make diabetes more difficult to manage. And vaginal dryness before and during menopause can be a side effect of reduced blood flow and nerve damage from diabetes.

Read: From hot flashes to night sweats, an overview of vasomotor symptoms during menopause >>

What are the treatment options for diabetes?

Treatment plans depend on the type of diabetes, but there are options for managing the condition.

Type 1 – requires insulin by injection. This can be done through injections or an insulin pump.

Type 2: Treatment may include medications (pills and/or injectables), insulin, weight loss, and diet changes.

Talk to your healthcare professional if you think you have prediabetes or need help managing your diabetes.