Common Signs of Diabetes

The symptoms of diabetes can be puzzling. Even the common ones may not be present in all cases. They may come and go. And the same symptoms can be produced by other conditions. Nevertheless, there are a cluster of common circumstances that tend to mark out the disease.

Unusually frequent urination is one of the classic symptoms that suggests the possibility of diabetes. One defining attribute of the disease is excessive glucose levels in the blood. Either the body produces too little insulin to deal with it (Type 1 diabetes), or the insulin isn’t used correctly (Type 2).

Excess urination stems from the body’s attempt to restore the glucose body. The kidneys work overtime to process the extra sugar; however they can’t filter is all. The remaining glucose is then eliminated through other metabolic mechanisms.

One result, and an accompanying symptom, is excessive thirst. The diabetic feels as if he or she is always thirsty, and no matter how much fluid is taken in it never seems like enough. That in turn prompts still more urination.

Constant tiredness may also be a sign of diabetes. The body’s insulin is failing to help cells absorb glucose from the blood and the result is fatigue. Glucose powers most body functions, including movement and cell repair.

Symptoms of diabetes can show up in other body systems as well.

Age and other conditions can cause blurry vision. As we age, the lenses of our eyes lose their elasticity, making focusing more difficult. This is called presbyopia. Vision problems related to diabetes, are more damaging than simple age related changes.

Diabetes affects the eyes by reducing fluids in all your tissues, particularly the lenses. Focusing becomes more difficult. If left untreated, diabetes can cause more blood vessels to appear on the retina, impairing vision. You may see spots (floaters), flashes of light or auras around lights

In some instances, cuts (particularly on the feet) may be slower to heal when a person has Type 2 diabetes. The reasons are not yet fully understood, but it is one more indicator. At the same time, the immune system is affected, leading to a lowered ability to fight off infection.

Since so many of these symptoms can be (and are) produced by a number of other conditions, the best course of action if you suspect you have diabetes is to seek a professional diagnosis. Simple blood tests can determine with a high degree of confidence whether or not you do in fact have the disease. They’re relatively painless and most are covered by ordinary health insurance.

Dealing with Diabetes

Dealing with diabetes brings a host of challenges. Emotional, psychological, and physical adjustments are needed in order to successfully deal with diabetes.

If not controlled, diabetes can damage the eyes, the kidneys, and other essential organs. Diabetes can reduce kidney function. It can cause vision changes and other health problems. Fortunately, you can choose to control this damage by changing your diet and exercise habits and by taking medicine if need be.

Dealing with diabetes, involves more than making physical changes. The emotional adjustments needed cannot be easily described or measured.

The chief emotional aspect of diabetes is stress. Stress can start a vicious cycle for the diabetic, because stress diminishes the body’s ability to fight infection. This hampering of the immune system, can promote infections, and more stress as the person worries about becoming ill from infections.

Breaking that cycle requires a broad spectrum of diabetes management techniques. Keeping the body as healthy as possible will minimize the effects. Keeping the right attitude will help reduce the odds of the effects occurring in the first place.

This is challenging, but not impossible. First, the diabetic must realize that diabetes control is a long-term, usually life-time battle.

Careful, regular monitoring of blood glucose levels is the first habit that a person with diabetes should develop and it is frequently the most difficult. Yet, keeping the blood glucose level steady with exercise, diet, and perhaps medication is absolutely essential to a diabetics health and even survival. A steady blood glucose level reduces the toll diabetes takes on the system. Keeping healthy, reduces stress, which in turn also reduces the toll on your system. Managing your diabetes should be as routine as grooming your hair.

Remember that knowledge is power. Become informed of exactly what consequences poorly managed diabetes leads to. This will help motivate to make the changes you need. It will help you develop a proper attitude to diabetes management so that you can actively control your disease.

Once you are informed, put your knowledge to action. Make a firm commitment to manage your diabetes. While this take patience and courage, you are up to the challenge.

Start by making simple changes. Walk ten minutes a day three times a week and work up to longer exercise sessions. Gradually, make dietary changes. Soon you will feel up to starting a more involved exercise program on a daily basis.

Don’t worry! You will slowly develop your skills and ability to manage your diabetes. This new found control will give you confidence that you can continue to successfully deal with diabetes. Diabetes management will become routine and you will cease to feel as burdened by it.

Reducing the Effects of Diabetes

Diabetes can have both short-term and long-term consequences. Discipline can help you reduce both sets of consequences.

Ups and downs in blood sugar can be unpleasant, resulting in nausea, muscle weakness, disorientation, dizziness, and other effects. Some diabetics have trouble keeping their blood glucose always steady. Certain practices can help minimize the chance of sudden changes in blood glucose.

Monitoring is sometimes painful and burdensome, but is an absolute must. Many glucose monitoring devices now reduce or eliminate the need for painful finger pricks.

Some contain tiny, powerful lasers that create a hole through which blood oozes. They produce only a mild tingling sensation. One recent device senses glucose level through the skin using an infrared beam, requiring no blood sample at all.

The intent of monitoring is to keep the glucose-insulin balance near normal. In people without diabetes, the fasting blood glucose level is under 99 mg/dL. Eating a big meal may cause the level to rise to above 200 mg/dL, but normal functioning releases enough insulin to bring the level down within a few hours. So a little variation in the glucose reading is normal; keeping the proper balance is the goal.

Monitoring should include routine physician visits and an A1C test four times a year. The glucose level at a particular time can be measured with various tests. However, the A1C test measures the average level over time. The test name comes the abbreviation for glycated hemoglobin-HbA1c.

Hemoglobin molecules in the red blood cells carry oxygen to tissues. The extra glucose in the bloodstream of a diabetic causes that hemoglobin to get glycated. That effect persists and allows an A1C test to measure the accumulated result.

Long term the effects will accumulate, good or bad. Over 10-15 years or longer, many diabetes patients of the past would endure blindness, kidney damage, nerve damage and other ill health effects. That no longer has to be the case. With contemporary understanding of the disease and modern technology it’s possible to reduce the odds of those effects nearly to those without the disease.

Exercise and diet are two key elements for the overwhelming majority of diabetes sufferers to help achieve the right glucose-insulin balance.

Because diet and exercise help keep body fat low, the effects of diabetes are minimized. Body fat plays a role in hormone production and release and it also interferes with the body’s reaction to glucose levels. Several studies show a definite correlation between the degree of diabetes and the degree of body fat, but the mechanisms for this are unclear.

One part of the puzzle is role lowering body fat plays in lowering the blood pressure. Chronic hypertension (high blood pressure) is a major contributor to the cardiovascular and nerve problems experienced by some diabetics.

With a well-disciplined self-management routine, a diabetic can achieve a practically normal life. The pain of monitoring the disease is minor compared to the enormous benefits that result from doing so.

Diabetes and Exercise

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It is widely known that exercise helps combat the symptoms of diabetes. Along with nutrition modifications, it helps diabetics lead healthier lives thereby avoiding serious complications associated with the disease. Recommended forms of exercise vary according to a person’s interests and abilities. Exercise works to lower blood glucose or blood sugar levels by increasing the body’s sensitivity to insulin and using glucose as fuel. In addition, exercise can reduce stress level which has been linked to diabetes.

Yoga has shown some beneficial results in curing diabetes. The yoga exercises that are prescribed for curing diabetes is different from hatha yoga exercise because it involves positions tailored to treat certain conditions, as well as meditation, relaxation and stretching exercises.

In the study, two groups were formed. A control group of diabetics and a yoga practice group. The control group underwent no changes in routine or diet. The yoga group attended a 90 minute yoga session once or twice a week. In addition, each yoga group participant was asked to practice 30 minutes per day at their convenience. At the end of the study, all yoga group participants had lowered blood sugar levels. Three participants were able to reduce the required amount of medication needed to control their diabetes. Interestingly, participants’ stress levels decreased, while feelings of well being increased. How would that influence diabetes?

It has been found that stress causes the release of toxic chemicals in the human body. Among those secreted are glycogen and cortisol. At the cellular level, they impact blood sugar in a negative way. They act in opposition of insulin, thereby increasing sugar levels in the blood. When a diabetic person is stressed out, a biochemical chain reaction causes higher levels of insulin resistant blood. That means the cell cannot convert the sugar into usable energy and the diabetics blood glucose level is high. Reducing the amount of stress as well as increasing the cell’s sensitivity to insulin go hand in hand when combating diabetes.

Participants of the study attended one or two 90-minute sessions per week. In addition, they were asked to practice for 30 minutes at home, daily. The center based classes included such poses as the spinal twist, the bow and abdominal breathing. Meditation and relaxation techniques were also incorporated for reducing stress. A control group was established to compare results between the yoga study participants and diabetics under typical conditions.

It has been known for a long time that exercise is helpful for diabetics. Yoga therapy may help reduce stress levels which could play a part in maturity onset diabetes. But one drawback is that some patients would find it hard to keep up the regular sessions needed to sustain the benefit. All the patients said they would like to see these classes set up on a permanent basis but we don’t have the money.

It is not necessarily the exercise component of the yoga therapy package which is most important, because there is not enough physical exercise to account for the changes, but stress reduction has a lot to do with it. Stress hormones increase sugar levels in the blood. People also benefit from the stabilization of their moods which yoga brings, an increased feeling of well-being and a feeling of being more in control, which may help with their diet control.

Diabetes Ahead: Atkins Detour Open

Diabetes is a disease that affects millions of Americans, children and adults alike. There are two major types of diabetes. Type I is a result of the body’s inability to produce insulin, a hormone that allows the body to convert sugars, starches and other food into energy. Type 2 is associated with insulin resistance and insulin deficiency. Unfortunately, most Americans are on the road to this type of diabetes due to a diet of highly-processed, rich foods. However, there are simple detours one can take to manage, delay or prevent Type 2 diabetes.

The road to diabetes has to do with something called the glycemic index. All carbohydrates are rated on this index with regards to the level of insulin reaction they produce. Foods that have a high glycemic index rating will cause your pancreas to release a lot of insulin to break down the amount of sugars and carbohydrates (which produce high amounts of glucose). The refined carbohydrates and sugars that make up the vast majority of the American diet rank very high on the glycemic index.

In youth, this pattern is continually repeated with little or no visible consequence. While children may gain a few pounds here or there, the possibility of acquiring diabetes is not usually considered seriously. Healthy systems recover quickly and easily. As we age though, the continued pattern takes its toll on our heart and circulatory system. The body becomes insulin resistant. That is, no amount of insulin works effectively to reduce blood sugar levels. At that point we become pre-diabetic or can acquire Type II diabetes.

A large part of the problem is the average American diet. Hidden sugars and highly processed carbohydrates work against our body’s natural metabolic processes. Certain foods are known to have a high-glycemic index. A glycemic index is a number that refers to the effect a carbohydrate has on our blood sugar levels. The higher the number, the more insulin the pancreas has to produce to convert the sugar into usable energy. Unfortunately, the American diet is rich in high-glycemic index foods.

With age, blood sugar and insulin difficulties become more aggravated. The condition is called “hyperinsulinism” and is a precursor for type II diabetes. It is normally accompanied by high blood pressure and high triglycerides.

In the Atkins diet, proteins are emphasized more in the plan. Proteins have little affect on blood-sugar levels. Therefore they help maintain a more steady balance in the body’s system. Low-glycemic index carbohydrates are incorporated as an energy source. While these still raise blood-sugar levels, it is at a much slower rate than highly processed, refined sugar and carbohydrates.

Of course, exercise and a healthy lifestyle are important components of delaying or preventing Type II diabetes. The Atkins diet, however, is one of the simplest changes a person can make to get on a healthy track. Balancing proteins, fats, and carbohydrates, the building blocks of nutrition, allows a person’s body to work efficiently and optimally. The result is stable blood-sugar levels, weight loss nd more energy.

It is certain that continuing down the highly processed, high-sugar freeway is sure to thrust us into diabetes. Along with the extra pounds, mood swings, irritability, and depression we’ll face heart disease, diabetes, and hypertension. These can all be delayed or prevented if we take the Adkins detour. Adhering to a better nutrition plan now lays the foundation for better health, tomorrow.

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