Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Diabetes

What is diabetes?

Diabetes is a disease in which your body is unable to properly use and store glucose (a form of sugar). Glucose backs up in the bloodstream causing your blood glucose or "sugar" to rise too high. There are two major types of diabetes. In Type 1 (also called juvenile-onset or insulin-dependant) diabetes, your body completely-stops producing any insulin, a hormone that enables your body to use glucose found in food for energy. People with Type 1 Diabetes must take daily insulin injection to survive. This form of diabetes usually develops in children or young adults, but can occur at any age. In Type 2 (also called adult-onset or non insulin-dependent) diabetes, the body produces insulin, but not enough to properly convert food into energy. This form of diabetes usually occurs in people who are over 40, overweight, and have a family history of diabetes.

How do people know if  they have diabetes?

People with diabetes frequently experience certain symptoms. These include: being very thirsty, having to go the bathroom very frequently to urinate, weight loss, increased hunger, blurry vision, skin infections, wounds that don't heal, and/or extreme unexplained fatigue. In some cases there are no symptoms - this happens at times with type 2 diabetes. In this case, people can live for months, even years without knowing they have the disease. This form of diabetes comes
on so gradually that symptoms may not even be recognized.

Who gets diabetes?

However, people who have close relatives with the disease are somewhat more likely to develop it. The risk of developing diabetes also increases, as people grow older. People who are over 40 and overweight are more likely to develop diabetes. So are people of African-American, Hispanic or Asian heritage. Also, people who develop diabetes while pregnant (a condition called gestational diabetes) are more likely to develop full- blown diabetes later in life.

How is diabetes treated?

There are certain things that everyone who has diabetes, whether type 1 or type 2, needs to do to is healthy. You need to have a meal (eating) plan. You need to pay attention to how much you exercise, because exercise can help your body use insulin better to convert glucose into energy for cells. Everyone with type 1 diabetes, and some people with type 2 diabetes, also needs to take insulin injections. Some people with type 2 diabetes take pills called "oral agents" which help their bodies produce more insulin and/or use the insulin it is producing better. Some people with type 2 diabetes can manage their disease with weight loss, diet and exercise alone and don't need any medication. Everyone who has diabetes should be seen at least once every six months by diabetes Specialist. You should also be seen periodically by. other members of a Diabetes treatment team, including a diabetes nurse . .educator,, and a diabetes dietitian educator who helps you develops. meal plan that works best for you. Ideally you should also see an exercise physiologist for help in developing an exercise plan and if you think you need it, a social worker, psychologist or other mental health professional for help with the stresses and challenges of living with a chronic disease. Everyone who has diabetes should have regular eye exams (once a year) by an ophthalmologist to make sure that any eye problems associated with diabetes are caught early, and treated 'before they become serious. Also, people with diabetes need to team how to monitor their blood sugars day-to-day at home using home blood sugar monitoring. This daily testing, which your diabetes educator can explain to you, will help you see how well your meal plan, exercise, and medication are working to keep your blood sugars in a normal range.

 What other problems can diabetes cause?

Our health care team will encourage you to follow your meal plan and exercise program, use your medications and monitor your blood sugars regularly to keep your blood sugars in as normal a range as possible as much of the time as possible. Why is this so important? Because poorly managed diabetes can lead to a hostel long-term complications among them are heart attacks, strokes, blindness, kidney failure, blood vessel disease that requires an amputation, nerve damage, and problems with sexual function. But happily, recent clinical research studies have shown that if people keep their blood sugars as close to normal as possible, they can reduce their risk of developing some of these complications by 50 percent or more.

Can diabetes be prevented?

May be someday. Many studies have been conducted at world premier diabetes centers and they. are screening the immediate relatives of someone with type 1 diabetes, because now it is possible to identify those who will develop this form of the disease as much as five or more years in advance. common type of diabetes, yet we still do not understand it very well. But recent research does suggest the there are some things you can do . to prevent this form of diabetes particularly if runs in you family, or if you have had gestational diabetes, or if you are a member of an high risk group (Hypertension obesity, high cholesterol level in the blood, smoking, sedentary executive life style etc), that is more prone to this disease. Many research studies are now underway to see if this form of diabetes can be prevented as well. Changes in lifestyle, (more exercise and weight loss), and certain medications are being tested to see if type 2 diabetes can be prevented.