Diabetes Complications: Hidden And Long Term Dangers

Diabetes Complications: Hidden And Long Term Dangers

 


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Statistics illustrate that there are around 18 million diabetics in America, both Type 1 and Type 2. It is remarkable how many diabetics who have no idea what dangers a diabetic faces over their lifetime. A diabetic, all things being equal, lives roughly 10 years less than their non-diabetic counterpart. Why do diabetics life shorter life spans than non-diabetics? The answer is both simple and complicated. But, let's make it real simple

Diabetics live shorter lives than non-diabetics because of diabetic complications.

What Are Diabetic Complications?

Diabetic complications are chronic medical conditions that begin to affect the body of the diabetic.
These complications are brought about mostly by a condition the medical community had named, "Advanced Glycation End products" (AGE) which is simply, "excess sugar" saturating the inside of the cells of the body.
Complications include (among others):

Coronary Artery Disease
Vascular Disease
Blindness
Kidney Disease
Retinopathy (Blindness) And
Loss Of Feeling In The Hands And The Feet (Peripheral Neuropathy).

Diabetes in the early stages does not produce symptoms.

Unless found during a routine medical exam, it is possible for a diabetic to remain undiagnosed for years. It is during these years that the beginnings of diabetic complications can gain a foothold due excess sugar in the cells.
The statistics show there is the possibility of as many as over 5 million people going about their normal lives while having undiagnosed diabetes.

Are Diabetic Complications A Certainty?

While the current consensus is that the formula for diabetic complications Diabetes + Time = Complications. What this means is there is a much higher potential of a diabetic becoming diagnosed with one or more diabetic complications over time. This is partly due to how well the individual monitors and controls his/her blood sugar.
Drastic rises and falls of blood sugar can be hard on the body and the excess sugar present in the cells create havoc on the different nerves within the body as well as the capillaries, veins, and arteries. The evidence to date show that excellent control of blood sugar and an active lifestyle goes a very long way in preventing and/or slowing down the onset of diabetic complications.

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The Risk Factors Surrounding Diabetes

There are numerous risk factors that can drive a pre-diabetic into full blown diabetes.

1) being overweight.
2) family history of diabetes,
3) lack of adequate exercise.
4) history of gestational diabetes (occurs during pregnancy and usually disappears after delivery).
5) certain ethnic groups

People over 45 years of age and has one or several of the risk factors mentioned above should be checked for diabetes each year, preferably during an annual medical exam. It has been shown that people with these risk factors comprise the majority of diagnosed cases of diabetes each year.

Can The Onset Of Diabetes Be Prevented?

People with the above risk factors can go a long way toward preventing the development of full-blown diabetes by making significant lifestyle change.
Diet and Exercise
What are lifestyle changes? Changing unhealthy diets to more blood sugar friendly ones, doing enough exercise to help offset increased blood sugar levels and keep the body healthy and losing weight especially if considered obese by the medical community.
If you are already diagnosed with full-blown diabetes, you should follow the same diet while under the meticulous care of your healthcare professional. Keep your cholesterol, blood pressure and blood sugar within proper limits and have your eyes checked every year.
Diabetes can contribute to blindness, kidney disease and heart disease. Complications caused nearly 70,000 deaths in 2000.

What Can The Diabetic Look Forward To?

Diabetic complications can be prevented or lessened for a longer time period by paying serious attention to lifestyle. A diabetic who eats right, keeps his blood sugar in control and within accepted limits, exercises and gets proper rest can expect to have a quality of life that is much higher in terms of the pain and suffering that diabetic complications brings into the lives of diabetics who do nothing to change their lifestyle.
What begins to occur in the diabetic who starts to develop complications because of uncontrolled blood sugars over time is a life filled with the possibility of becoming an invalid, either blind, an amputee, or suffering renal failure or a heart attack.
The above paints a rather grim picture if lifestyle changes are not adhered to. Research has shown that the diabetic that keeps their blood sugar within acceptable limits and follows a healthy, diabetic lifestyle that has been shown to be effective against diabetic complications stands a much better chance of not developing many of the complications their less than dedicated counterparts do.

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Life after diabetes Most modern professionals agree that life style changes can greatly improve the longevity and quality of your life! There is life after diabetes.

Resources that say, "You Can Make It!
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Can A Good Diet Keep Diabetes At Bay?
Depending upon the stage of their diabetes, a physician will normally prescribe either medication or insulin. Both help the body process the sugars in the blood, to break them down and allow the patient to expel them. However, insulin and medication are no substitute for a healthy diet.




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