Identifying Signs And Symptoms of Diabetes

“Future Warns Us Through Current Symptoms In Nature”

Hello Everyone!

In this post we’ll know about the signs and symptoms of Diabetes, because early diagnosis leads to much better Prognosis (Outcome of treatment or chances of being cured).

Symptoms vary from person to person. The early stages of diabetes have very few symptoms, so you may not know you have the disease. But damage may already be happening to your eyes, your kidneys and your cardiovascular system even before you notice symptoms.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Common Symptoms: TYPE I

The following symptoms may be the first signs of type 1 diabetes. Or, they may occur when blood sugar is high.

§  Being very thirsty

§  Feeling very hungry

§  Feeling tired all the time

§  Having blurry eyesight

§  Feelings of pins and needles in your feet

§  Losing feeling in your feet

§  Losing weight without trying

§  Urinating more often (including urinating at night or bedwetting in children who were dry overnight before)

For other people, following serious warning symptoms may be the first signs of type 1 diabetes. Or, they may happen when blood sugar is very high (diabetic ketoacidosis):

§  Deep, rapid breathing

§  Dry skin and mouth

§  Flushed face

§  Fruity breath odor

§  Nausea or vomiting; inability to keep down fluids

§  Stomach pain

Common Symptoms: TYPE II

People with type 2 diabetes often have no symptoms at first. They may not have symptoms for many years.

Early symptoms of diabetes caused by a high blood sugar level may include:

§  Bladder, kidney or other infections that are more frequent or heal slowly

§  Frequent or recurring skin, gum or vaginal yeast infections

§  Fatigue

§  Hunger

§  Increased thirst

§  Increased urination

§  Blurred vision

§  Slow-healing wounds, sores or bruises

§  Some people with diabetes don’t have any of these signs or symptoms.

The only way to know if you have diabetes is to have your doctor do a blood test.

After many years, diabetes can lead to serious health problems, and as a result, many other symptoms.

Symptoms of Insulin Resistance and Prediabetes

Insulin resistance and prediabetes usually have no symptoms. People may have one or both conditions for several years without knowing they have them. Even without symptoms, health care providers can identify people at high risk by their physical characteristics, also known as risk factors.

People with a severe form of insulin resistance may have dark patches of skin, usually on the back of the neck. Sometimes people have a dark ring around their neck. Dark patches may also appear on elbows, knees, knuckles, and armpits. This condition is called Acanthosis Nigricans. In addition, there may be cholesterol problems, yeast infections and skipped or absent periods in teen girls and women.

When To Call Your Doctor?

§  You start feeling very thirsty and are urinating more often than usual.

§  You are nauseous or vomit more than once.

§  You lose a significant amount of weight.

§  You start breathing deeper and faster.

§  Your breath smells like nail polish remover.

§  You start to tremble, feel weak and drowsy, and then feel confused or dizzy, or your vision becomes blurred.

§  You feel uncoordinated.

§  You have a sore, blister or wound (especially on your feet) that won't heal.

If blood sugar levels become very high without treatment, a condition called diabetic ketoacidosis may develop. If this happens, symptoms may include shortness of breath, pain in the abdomen, vomiting, dehydration, and even coma and death if left untreated.

 
Please leave your comments on the Topic.

Diabetes Risk Test

“Just because you’re not sick doesn’t mean you’re Healthy”

Hello everyone!

This is the third post in the Diabetes series, and in this post we’ll talk about the Risk Factors of Diabetes and whether you are at risk or not. 

Are you at risk?

There are many factors that increase your risk for diabetes. To find out about your risk, note each item on this list that applies to you.

§  I am 45 years of age or older.

 

§  The At-Risk Weight Chart shows my current weight puts me at risk.

 

§  I have a parent, brother, or sister with diabetes.

 

§  My family background is African American, Hispanic/Latino, American Indian, Asian American or Pacific Islander.

 

§  I have had diabetes while I was pregnant (this is called gestational diabetes) or I gave birth to a baby weighing 9 pounds or more.

 

§  I have been told that my blood glucose (blood sugar) levels are higher than normal.

 

§  My blood pressure is 140/90 or higher, or I have been told that I have high blood pressure.

 

§  My cholesterol (lipid) levels are not normal. My HDL cholesterol (“good” cholesterol) is less than 35 or my triglyceride level is higher than 250.

 

§  I am fairly inactive. I am physically active less than three times a week.

 

§  I have been told that I have polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)

 

§  The skin around my neck or in my armpits appears dirty no matter how much I scrub it. The skin appears dark, thick and velvety. This is called acanthosis nigricans.

 

§  I have been told that I have blood vessel problems affecting my heart, brain, or legs.

If you have any of the items above, be sure to talk with your health care team about your risk for diabetes and whether you should be tested.

Diabetes Risk Test

One in four Americans with diabetes is undiagnosed. Could you be one of the 7 million Americans who has diabetes and doesn’t know it? Take the test and learn more about your risk for getting type 2 diabetes.





Adapted From: American Diabetes Association's Diabetes Risk Test (Click on Image to enlarge).

The Higher Your Score, The Higher Your Risk.

§  If you scored 5 or more: You are at increased risk for having type 2 diabetes. Talk to your health care provider about simple blood tests to check for diabetes or prediabetes. Early diagnosis and treatment can prevent or delay heart attack, stroke, blindness, kidney disease, and other health problems.

 

§  If you scored below 5: Even if your score was below 5, you may be at increased risk for having prediabetes. Talk to your health care team about getting tested, particularly if you are over 45, overweight, or have a family member with diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes is more common in African Americans and people with African ancestry, Hispanics and Latinos, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders. NDEP has special information for these groups.

Diabetes: Types And Genetic Basis

Tell Diabetes! NOT ME

Hello Everyone!

This is the first post in the series of Diabetes. The upcoming Posts will be about Causes and Risk Factors, Prevention, Food and Exercises, Management of Diabetes, Diabetes and Pregnancy, Financial Help and many other things you need to know. Hope It will Help You!

So, coming to the topic, Diabetes is a condition when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. Blood glucose is the main type of sugar found in your blood and your main source of energy. Glucose comes from the food you eat and is also made in your liver and muscles.

Your pancreas releases a hormone it makes, called insulin, into your blood. Insulin helps your blood carry glucose to all your body’s cells. Sometimes your body doesn’t make enough insulin or the insulin doesn’t work the way it should. Glucose then stays in your blood and doesn’t reach your cells. Your blood glucose levels get too high and can cause diabetes or prediabetes.

The reason it is a dangerous condition is because it exhibits Iceberg Phenomenon. That means you may already be having diabetes but you don’t know it now. And by the time it is diagnosed, it becomes difficult to control. This is more relevant in case of developing countries such as India, where lack of awareness and resources are making it The Diabetic Capital of the World.

Types of Diabetes

There are 2 types of diabetes. Type 1 and Type 2.

Type 1 diabetes occurs when your body’s pancreas doesn’t produce any insulin. It is also called insulin-dependent diabetes and sometimes called juvenile diabetes because it is usually discovered in children and teenagers, but adults may also have it.

Type 2 diabetes occurs when the pancreas either doesn’t produce enough insulin or your body’s cells ignore the insulin (Insulin Resistance). Without enough insulin, the glucose stays in your blood.

You can also have Prediabetes. This means that your blood sugar is higher than normal but not high enough to be called diabetes. Having prediabetes puts you at a higher risk of getting type 2 diabetes.

Over time, having too much glucose in your blood can cause complications. It can damage your eye, kidney, and nerves. Diabetes can also cause heart diseases, stroke and even the need to remove a limb. Pregnant women can also get diabetes, called gestational diabetes.

Serious Complications of Diabetes If Left Untreated
Retinopathy (eye damage)	Diabetic Foot (Due to poor healing)

Between 90% and 95% of people who are diagnosed with diabetes, have Type 2 diabetes. In the United States, 29.1 million people have diabetes.

The good news is that Most of these people lead full, healthy lives. You can take steps to prevent or delay the onset of full-blown type 2 diabetes by making lifestyle changes, such as eating a healthy diet, reaching and maintaining a healthy weight, and exercising regularly.

One of the best things you can do for yourself is to learn all you can about diabetes.

Genetics of Diabetes

You've probably wondered how you developed diabetes. You may worry that your children will develop it too.

Unlike some traits, diabetes does not seem to be inherited in a simple pattern. Yet clearly, some people are born more likely to develop diabetes than others.

What Leads To Diabetes?

Type 1 and type 2 diabetes have different causes. Yet two factors are important in both. You inherit a predisposition to the disease then something in your environment triggers it.

Genes alone are not enough. One proof of this is identical twins. Identical twins have identical genes. Yet when one twin has type 1 diabetes, the other gets the disease at most only half the time. When one twin has type 2 diabetes, the other's risk is at most 3 in 4.

Type 1 Diabetes

In most cases of type 1 diabetes, people need to inherit risk factors from both parents. We think these factors must be more common in whites because whites have the highest rate of type 1 diabetes.

Because most people who are at risk do not get diabetes, researchers want to find out what the environmental triggers are.

One trigger might be related to cold weather. Type 1 diabetes develops more often in winter than summer and is more common in places with cold climates.

Another trigger might be viruses. Perhaps a virus that has only mild effects on most people triggers type 1 diabetes in others.

Early diet may also play a role. Type 1 diabetes is less common in people who were breastfed and in those who first ate solid foods at later stages.

Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes has a stronger link to family history and lineage than type 1, although it too depends on environmental factors. 

Studies of twins have shown that genetics play a very strong role in the development of type 2 diabetes.

Lifestyle also influences the development of type 2 diabetes. Obesity tends to run in families, and families tend to have similar eating and exercise habits.

If you have a family history of type 2 diabetes, it may be difficult to figure out whether your diabetes is due to lifestyle factors or genetic susceptibility. Most likely it is due to both. However, don’t lose heart. Studies show that it is possible to delay or prevent type 2 diabetes by exercising and losing weight.

Your Child's Risk

Type 1 Diabetes

In general, if you are a man with type 1 diabetes, the odds of your child developing diabetes are 1 in 17.

If you are a woman with type 1 diabetes and your child was born before you were 25, your child's risk is 1 in 25; if your child was born after you turned 25, your child's risk is 1 in 100.

Your child's risk is doubled if you developed diabetes before age 11. If both you and your partner have type 1 diabetes, the risk is between 1 in 10 and 1 in 4.

There is an exception to these numbers. About 1 in every 7 people with type 1 diabetes has a condition called type 2 polyglandular autoimmune syndrome. In addition to having diabetes, these people also have thyroid disease and a poorly working adrenal gland. If you have this syndrome, your child's risk of getting the syndrome — and Type 1 diabetes — is 1 in 2.

Researchers are learning how to predict a person's odds of getting diabetes. For example, a more expensive test can be done for children who have siblings with type 1 diabetes. This test measures antibodies to insulin, to Islets cells in Pancreas, or to an enzyme called glutamic acid decarboxylase. High levels can indicate that a child has a higher risk of developing type 1 diabetes.

Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes runs in families. In part, this tendency is due to children learning bad habits — eating a poor diet, not exercising — from their parents. But there is also a genetic basis.

In general, if you have type 2 diabetes, the risk of your child getting diabetes is 1 in 7 (if you were diagnosed before age 50) and 1 in 13 if you were diagnosed after age 50.

Some scientists believe that a child's risk is greater when the parent with type 2 diabetes is the mother. If both you and your partner have type 2 diabetes, your child's risk is about 1 in 2.

Please leave comments below about the length of the post, Depth of the content And whether it can be improved in some ways.

Welcome Aboard! For a Safer Journey

"Every Human Being is the Author of its Own Health AND DISEASE" 

Hey Everyone, this is my FIRST Blog, so it is kind of Introductory.
 
This series of Blogs which I'm going to publish at regular interval aims at helping people recognizing some of the most deadliest and rapidly expanding Diseases of today's World. So that you are well prepared in advanced to fight against it, BEFORE IT HITS YOU.
 
The biggest problem with most of the Disease is that they are capable of hiding inside your body until they become deadly and out of control. They don't produce easily observable drastic changes in the normal functioning of the body, and so the changes are passed on as GENERAL SYMPTOMS.
 
Just as an example, the symptoms of AIDS don't appear instantly after the infection, it takes more than 5 or 6 years before the symptoms START APPEARING. And if ignored, the symptoms can pass on for another 4-5 years. So, its after 10-12 years that a person realizes, he is suffering from AIDS. But during all these years the HIV virus is invading your body, multiplying itself rapidly, killing host macrophages and T-helper cells. Thus weakening your Immune System.
 
 A popular theory which explains this observation is ICEBERG PHENOMENON. It is the metaphor of the tip and the submerged part of an iceberg. It explains that in clinical practice, only a small proportion of cases of important diseases (the tip of the iceberg) are seen at an early stage in the natural history when intervention can achieve prevention, cure, or relief of symptoms.
That portion of disease which remains unrecorded or undetected despite physicians’ diagnostic endeavors and community disease surveillance procedures forms the submerged part of the Iceberg (which is about 85%-90%).

So, it is very ,very important to observe and identify that submerged part at an early stage.
 
However, there are certain diseases which do not show this Iceberg phenomenon such as Rabies, Tetanus, Measles, etc.
 
In my posts I will clearly mention which diseases exhibit iceberg phenomenon so that an early intervention is made to prevent or treat the disease.
 
So, STAY tuned.