Diabetes
What Is Diabetes ?
Diabetes prevents your body from turning your food into energy. Instead glucose stays in your bloodstream, and left untreated can result in a range of complications.
If you have recently been diagnosed as diabetic, don’t worry. With proper treatment and care, you will lead a normal and happy life. You may need to make a few changes in your lifestyle – but then, if you are like me, you probably had plans to do that anyway and just never got round to it.
Now is the time to kick yourself into action. You cannot leave this up to your doctor alone – it needs you to take responsibility for your own treatment, and that starts with understanding what you are dealing with.
There are three types of Diabetes:
Type 1 Diabetes, (sometimes called Juvenile Diabetes) is usually found in young children and teenagers, but can also occur later in life.
In Type 1 Diabetes, your body is not producing insulin, a hormone needed to convert blood sugar into energy. Normally this hormone is produced by cells in your pancreas, but for some reason this is not happening as it should.
As the glucose in your blood can’t be converted into energy and absorbed by your cells, it builds up causing high blood sugar.
Left untreated, high blood sugar can cause serious long-term health problems.
The normal treatment for people with type 1 diabetes is daily injections of insulin which keeps the blood sugar level within normal ranges.
Finding out you have diabetes can be upsetting, but it should not prevent you from living a long and happy life.
If you think this condition will prevent you leading an active life, consider Sir Steve Redgrave, one of the World’s greatest Olympic athletes.
Type 2 diabetes (sometimes called mature onset diabetes) is the most common form of diabetes.
As with Type 1 Diabetes, the problem is related to insulin, a hormone needed to convert sugar into energy.
With Type 2 diabetes your body might be producing too little insulin, or it might not be reacting to the insulin correctly. Either way, the end result is that glucose builds up in the bloodstream instead of going into the cells. Left untreated, high blood sugar can cause serious long-term health problems.
Type 2 diabetes usually appears later in life, often between the ages of 35-45 years. As it often develops slowly, many people may not recognise the symptoms, and may have diabetes without knowing it.
If you have recently been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, you are one of the lucky ones. Many people have diabetes without knowing it, and are at much greater risk of long term medical complications.
How Is Diabetes Treated ?
The major goal in treating diabetes is to minimize any elevation of blood sugar (glucose) without causing abnormally low levels of blood sugar. Type 1 diabetes is treated with insulin, exercise, and a diabetic diet. Type 2 diabetes is treated first with weight reduction, a diabetic diet, and exercise. When these measures fail to control the elevated blood sugars, oral medications are used. If oral medications are still insufficient, treatment with insulin is considered.
Adherence to a diabetic diet is an important aspect of controlling elevated blood sugar in patients with diabetes. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) has provided guidelines for a diabetic diet. The ADA diet is a balanced, nutritious diet that is low in fat, cholesterol, and simple sugars. The total daily calories are evenly divided into three meals. In the past two years, the ADA has lifted the absolute ban on simple sugars. Small amounts of simple sugars are allowed when consumed with a complex meal.
Weight reduction and exercise are important treatments for diabetes. Weight reduction and exercise increase the body’s sensitivity to insulin, thus helping to control blood sugar elevations.
WARNING: All the information below applies to patients who are not pregnant or breastfeeding. At present the only recommended way of controlling diabetes in women who are pregnant or breastfeeding is by diet, exercise and insulin therapy. You should speak with your doctor if you are taking these medications and are considering becoming pregnant or if you have become pregnant while taking these medications.
Based on what is known, medications for type 2 diabetes are designed to:
increase the insulin output by the pancreas; decrease the amount of glucose released from the liver; increase the sensitivity (response) of cells to insulin; decrease the absorption of carbohydrates from the intestine, and slow emptying of the stomach to delay the presentation of carbohydrates for digestion and absorption in the small intestine.
When selecting therapy for type 2 diabetes, consideration should be given to:
the magnitude of change in blood sugar control that each medication will provide; other coexisting medical conditions (high blood pressure, high cholesterol, etc.); adverse effects of the therapy; contraindications to therapy; issues that may affect compliance (timing of medication, frequency of dosing); and cost to the patient and the healthcare system.
It’s important to remember that if a drug can provide more than one benefit (lower blood sugar and have a beneficial effect on cholesterol, for example), it should be preferred. It’s also important to bear in mind that the cost of drug therapy is relatively small compared to the cost of managing the long-term complications associated with poorly controlled diabetes.
Varying combinations of medications also are used to correct abnormally elevated levels of blood glucose in diabetes. As the list of medications continues to expand, treatment options for type 2 diabetes can be better tailored to meet an individuals needs. Not every patient with type 2 diabetes will benefit from every drug, and not every drug is suitable for each patient. Patients with type 2 diabetes should work closely with their physicians to achieve an approach that provides the greatest benefits while minimizing risks.