Diabetes rarely kills anyone instantly, but unmanaged diabetes causes numerous health issues. Diabetes is the important underlying cause of cardiovascular ailments, stroke, erectile dysfunction, and chronic kidney disease and is also the leading cause of non-trauma-related limb amputations.
However, it is worth understanding that diabetes is a highly manageable condition. Not only that, with proper diabetes care, one may even expect prolonged diabetes remission. Most people with the right kind of diabetes care can expect to live close to normal life.
Types of diabetes
There are many types of diabetes, and they differ significantly from each other. However, the two most common types of diabetes are Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disorder. About 5-7% of people diagnosed with diabetes have this type of diabetes. It is a diabetes of the young and lean. Therefore, it is generally diagnosed in early childhood or teenage. Moreover, it has an abrupt start. It is a condition in which autoimmunity kills all the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. Thus, insulin therapy is the only treatment for this type of diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes is the most common type of diabetes. About 90% of all cases of diabetes are of Type 2 diabetes. That is why when we say diabetes, we generally mean Type 2 diabetes (T2D). Understanding T2D is very important as it is a highly preventable lifestyle disorder.
It means that diabetes (T2D) is not only preventable, but it is also reversible in some cases, and it is managed effectively with the help of medications. If diagnosed early, one can expect to live close to normal life with diabetes with adequate medical care.
T2D diabetes occurs due to a sedentary lifestyle and excessive calorie intake. This forces excessive insulin production, which ultimately leads to insulin resistance. In T2D, the death of insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas occurs gradually over the years. Thus, if diagnosed early, adequate diabetes care can help preserve the remaining insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. Not only that, the right kind of diabetes care may even help regenerate insulin-producing beta cells.
Early signs of diabetes
Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is often diagnosed by chance, as it produces very mild signs that often go unnoticed in its early stages. This is why high-risk individuals like obese or those with a family history should be frequently screened for diabetes.
Some of the early signs of diabetes could be unexplained fatigue, excessive sweating, thirst, increased urination, and an increase in appetite. In advanced cases, one may notice that minor injuries start healing slowly due to a slow down in anabolic processes.
