What is Diabetes?
Diabetes is a condition where your blood sugar (glucose) levels are too high. Glucose is a type of sugar that your body gets from food. Your body needs glucose for energy, but to use it properly, it needs insulin.
What is Insulin?
Insulin is a hormone made by the pancreas, an organ in your abdomen. Insulin acts like a key that unlocks the door of your cells, allowing glucose from your bloodstream to enter and provide energy for your body’s activities.
Types of Diabetes:
Type 1 Diabetes:
Cause: This type happens when the immune system, which usually fights off germs, mistakenly attacks and destroys the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas.
Result: Without these cells, the body can’t make insulin, so glucose can’t get into the cells and stays in the blood.
Type 2 Diabetes:
Cause: In this type, the body doesn’t use insulin properly (insulin resistance) or doesn’t make enough insulin.
Result: Glucose can’t get into the cells effectively, so it builds up in the blood.
What Happens if Normal Blood Sugar Levels Become Abnormal?
Hyperglycemia (High Blood Sugar)
- Thirsty All the Time: You might feel very thirsty and drink a lot more than usual.
- Frequent Trips to the Bathroom: You may need to urinate a lot and sometimes in large amounts.
- Feeling Tired: You might feel more tired than usual, even if you’ve rested.
- Blurry Vision: Your vision might become blurry or unclear.
- Headaches: You could have frequent headaches.
- Dry Mouth and Skin: Your mouth and skin might feel dry.
- Feeling Sick: You might feel nauseous or throw up in severe cases.
- Unexpected Weight Loss: Losing weight without trying can happen.
- Breathing Fast: In very high cases, you might breathe faster or deeper than normal.
Hypoglycemia (Low Blood Sugar)
- Shaking: You may feel shaky or jittery.
- Sweating: You could sweat a lot, even when it’s not hot.
- Dizzy: You might feel lightheaded or dizzy.
- Confused: It may be hard to think clearly or you might feel confused.
- Weak: You could feel weak or exhausted.
- Hungry: You might feel very hungry, especially for sweet foods.
- Headaches: You could have headaches.
- Fast Heartbeat: You might notice your heart is racing or pounding.
- Blurred Vision: Your vision might get blurry suddenly.
- Fainting: In severe cases, you could faint or have a seizure.
Why Does Type 2 Diabetes Develop?
- Genetics: If your family has diabetes, you’re at higher risk.
- Lifestyle: Eating a lot of unhealthy foods, not exercising, and being overweight can contribute to Type 2 diabetes.
- Age: Risk increases with age, especially after 45.
- Other Conditions: High blood pressure or high cholesterol can also increase risk.
How Does Diabetes Affect the Body?
- High Blood Sugar: If you have diabetes, your blood sugar levels stay high because glucose isn’t being used properly.
- Health Problems: Over time, high blood sugar can damage blood vessels and nerves, leading to problems like heart disease, kidney disease, nerve damage, and eye issues.
Managing Diabetes:
- For Type 1: You need to take insulin injections or use an insulin pump.
- For Type 2: Managing blood sugar often involves lifestyle changes (healthy diet and exercise) and sometimes medication or insulin.
Simple Technique To Help Manage Blood Sugar
Common Diabetes Treatments:
- Healthy Diet: Focus on balanced meals with controlled carbohydrates, fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains.
- Consistent exercise sharpens your body’s insulin response and keeps your blood sugar levels steady.
- Oral Medications: For Type 2 diabetes, drugs like metformin help manage blood sugar levels.
- Insulin Therapy: For Type 1 diabetes and some Type 2 cases, insulin injections or pumps are used to regulate blood sugar.
- Regular Checks: Using a glucose meter to track blood sugar levels and adjust treatment as needed.
