Diabetes

What is diabetes?

Diabetes is a group of diseases that interfere with insulin production and activity in your body. Insulin is a hormone that helps convert glucose — blood sugar — into energy.

When this process doesn’t happen correctly, your blood sugar levels increase, which leads to a wide range of potentially dangerous health complications. 

The three main types of diabetes are type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes. Prediabetes occurs when your blood sugar is elevated but hasn’t reached the levels required for a clinical diabetes diagnosis. 

Type 1 diabetes

Type 1 diabetes develops when your pancreas doesn’t produce insulin. Medical researchers believe this malfunction is the result of an autoimmune disorder that destroys the insulin-producing cells in your pancreas. Type 1 diabetes is sometimes called juvenile diabetes because a diagnosis frequently occurs in young people.

Type 2 diabetes

Type 2 diabetes develops when your body stops using insulin correctly. It’s sometimes called insulin resistance. While your genes play a part in your risk for type 2 diabetes, your lifestyle significantly influences your risk of developing the condition. Type 2 diabetes is more prevalent in adults, but it’s becoming more common in young people. 

Gestational diabetes

Some women develop gestational diabetes during the second trimester of pregnancy. While you’re pregnant, your body makes a hormone that can interfere with the way your body uses insulin. Your condition usually subsides soon after your baby is born, but increases your risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life. 

What are the warning signs of diabetes?

Your symptoms depend on the type of diabetes. For example, type 1 diabetes usually causes a rapid onset of symptoms, including:

• Increased thirst and urination
• Increased hunger
• Fatigue
• Blurry vision
• Unexplained weight loss

Type 2 diabetes, on the other hand, doesn’t always cause symptoms in its early stages. You could have type 2 diabetes or prediabetes for months or even years before you notice a change in your health. 

As diabetes progresses, it can lead to more severe symptoms such as neuropathy, ulcers on your feet, ankles, or legs, and blindness. 

How is diabetes treated?

Whenever possible, LaSante Health Center helps you manage your condition with changes to your diet and exercise habits. 

For example, cutting back on sugar and refined carbohydrates and getting regular physical activity can help lower and regulate your blood sugar levels. These lifestyle changes can also reverse prediabetes and help you avoid a type 2 diabetes diagnosis.

However, if you have type 1 diabetes or advanced type 2 diabetes, your provider prescribes insulin to help your body convert glucose to energy more efficiently. 

Call LaSante Health Center today or make an appointment online for expert diabetes testing and treatment.