Signs of Diabetes

What follows is general information you can use, along with your doctor’s advice on how to identify the signs of diabetes, either type 1 or type 2 and how to treat it.  Everything from diet and exercise to selecting the right blood glucose meter is here. But mostly, this will act as a guide to help you with the daily situations faced by those diagnosed with diabetes.

The primary weapon in the fight against diabetes is the proper use of good information. By taking the right course of action, you can keep you diabetes in check and lead a long, happy life.

The first step is to distinguish the difference between diabetes type 1 and type 2. While both carry similar symptoms and signs of diabetes, there is a difference to their causes.

The symptoms and signs of diabetes type 2 gradually develop over weeks or months because while your body is still producing insulin, your body is not processing it properly. This can be due to a variety of factors;

You body either cannot produce enough insulin to meet the needs or the cells in your body do not utilize the insulin properly. Thus, you need more insulin to overcome that resistance. Also, a combination of the two effects can result in type 2 diabetes, which is far more common than diabetes type 1.

In diabetes type 1, the beta cells located in the pancreas stop making insulin. Unlike diabetes type two, the symptoms develop more quickly over a few days or weeks because of the rapid drop of insulin levels in the bloodstream. This type of diabetes tends to develop in children or in young adults. Insulin injections and a prescribed diet are the general treatments.

Before, diabetes type 2 was often called “adult onset diabetes” because it tended to develop in older adults who had long established a sedentary lifestyle along with poor diet, but that has all changed with the growing obesity rates among children. Today, it is more common to see diabetes type 2 develop well before the normal ages of 40, especially in children and young adults.

The risk factors for diabetes type 2 begin with being overweight, having a family history of diabetes, glucose intolerance, and if temporary symptoms develop during pregnancy.

The symptoms preceding the onset of type 2 diabetes can be vague and misleading at first, in many cases it can take weeks or months before the signs of diabetes become pronounced enough for many to visit their physician.

The most common symptoms are being thirsty most of the time, passing large amounts of urine, fatigue and unexpected weight loss. Such signs of diabetes at this stage can be quite vague and can be confused with other types of illnesses.

If you should develop these symptoms, then a visit to your physician is recommended. The longer you wait, the more damage is being done to your blood vessels which can affect other organs in your body, particularly the heart, kidneys, and eyes.  Blurring vision is another of the signs of diabetes as well.

But remember that in many cases type 2 diabetes can be avoided if you follow a proper diet and exercise program that keeps the excess weight off.