The topic of diabetes is one a lot of people are ill aware of; many people only pay heed to the subject when it hits them or someone close to them.
Diabetes isn’t an illness to be played with, and these are some important facts you should know about diabetes.
1. There are two main types of diabetes; type 1 and type 2.
2. Besides type 1 and type 2, there are many types of diabetes. Type 3 diabetes is a proposed term for Alzheimer’s disease because a lot of links have been found between Alzheimer’s and the blood glucose levels in the brain.
3. Type 1 diabetes is characterised by a lack of insulin, while type 2 diabetes is characterised by ineffective use of insulin. Insulin is a substance the body makes in order to convert sugar into energy.
Type 1 diabetes could occur when the immune system attacks insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas.
Type 2 diabetes is often associated with ageing and genetics; it’s mostly caused by the natural rise in blood sugar as one gets older.
4. Type 2 diabetes is much more common than type 1 and it accounts for 90% of diabetes in the world.
5. About one third of people with diabetes do not even know they have diabetes.
6. Type 2 diabetes do not always have symptoms.
7. Type 2 diabetes in children is a rare occurrence, but it’s now increasing worldwide among adolescents and children.
8. Total deaths from diabetes are projected to rise by 50% in the next ten years. They are projected to occur by 80% in upper-middle income countries.
9. Diabetes could lead to serious health complications like heart disease, kidney disease, retinopathy and even amputation.
10. Research has found that diabetes could affect one emotionally and could also cause depression.
11. Diabetes can also affect your sex life. Erectile dysfunction, low sperm count and quality in men, and vaginitis and cystitis in women.
12. With the right treatment, diabetes can be properly managed and reversed.
13. Cutting down on carbohydrate is good for your blood sugar.
14. Your blood glucose level could be affected by stress, alcohol, lack of exercising, sleep and sex, pollution and a host of other factors.
15. People with diabetes are twice more likely to develop heart disease than people without it.
16. Diabetes is the leading cause of blindness in working-age adults today.
S.O.Z