Being diagnosed with diabetes can be frightening or depressing news. You may have heard about the possible severe complications, such as eye problems, kidney failure, heart disease, and amputations. You may not have heard the good news: The complications of diabetes can be delayed or even prevented by taking good care of yourself. Here are some things you should know.
Having diabetes means that there is too much sugar (glucose) in your blood. Your blood always has some sugar in it because your body needs it for energy. But too much sugar in the blood is not good for your health.
When you digest food, your body breaks down much of the food into sugar. Your blood carries the sugar to the cells of your body for energy. Your body uses a hormone called insulin to help move the sugar from the bloodstream into the cells. Insulin is made by the pancreas. When your body does not have enough insulin, or has trouble using insulin, sugar cannot get into your cells. Sugar builds up in your blood. Too much sugar in your blood can cause many problems.
There are 4 common types of diabetes: type 1, type 2, gestational, and prediabetes.
All of these types of diabetes have one thing in common: blood sugar that is too high.
Over time high blood sugar damages the blood vessels. This damage happens throughout the body, but some organs are more sensitive to the changes in the blood vessels. The organs most often affected are the eyes, the heart, the kidneys, and the blood vessels to the feet and legs. The blood vessels to the brain can also be damaged. This damage makes it more likely that people with diabetes will have a stroke.
To stay well when you have diabetes you need to:
Controlling your blood sugar: The most important part of staying well with diabetes is controlling your blood sugar. If you keep your blood sugar in the range recommended by your healthcare provider, you can delay or prevent the complications of diabetes. The steps to controlling your blood sugar are:
Keeping your blood pressure normal: Like high blood sugar, high blood pressure damages blood vessels. When these two work together, damage to your organs can happen much faster. A person with diabetes and high blood pressure is at high risk for heart attack, stroke, eye damage, and kidney failure. The best ways to control your blood pressure are:
Keeping your cholesterol normal: High cholesterol alone can cause heart disease and stroke. Combine it with diabetes or high blood pressure and you have an even higher risk of heart disease. Cholesterol can be controlled with weight, diet, exercise, and, if necessary, medicine. This is a very important part of staying healthy with diabetes.
Preventing infection: People who have diabetes can get infections more easily. Do these things to stay healthy:
Getting your eyes checked every year: Diabetes can cause blindness. This can be prevented if you see your eye doctor as often as recommended by your healthcare provider. Early eye changes that can lead to blindness can be treated to prevent loss of your eyesight.
Quitting smoking: Smoking greatly increases the risk of diabetes complications. One of the best things you can do for yourself is to stop smoking if you are a smoker.
Avoiding stress: Stressful events or situations affect the body's hormones, and some hormones increase blood sugar. Stress also makes your blood pressure go up. Try to find ways to manage the stress in your life. Things that might help are more exercise, counseling, better money management, and family meetings. Reducing your stress will help you control your blood sugar and stay healthy.
Seeing your healthcare provider: Most people with diabetes should see their healthcare provider at least every 3 months. Your provider will check your control of your sugar levels and your blood pressure. He or she will also check your cholesterol level and other test results. Seeing your provider regularly can help you get the most up-to-date care available for diabetes.
For more information, see the Web site for the American Diabetes Association at http://www.diabetes.org/ and the National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse Web site at http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov.