Diabetes

Diabetes

Understanding Diabetes

            Diabetes is a disease that results in too much sugar in the blood stream. It affects the body’s ability to produce or respond to the hormone insulin and therefore is impaired which can result in an abnormal metabolism of carbs according to the Oxford dictionary. There are two types of diabetes, Type One that is a chronic condition where the pancreas does not produce or produces very little insulin. Type Two is also a chronic condition that can affect how the body processes the blood sugars. There can also be what is called prediabetes that means the blood sugars are high but no high enough to be Type Two. Then there is gestational diabetes, which is high blood sugars in pregnant women. 

            The body uses glucose, which is a type of sugar, to fuel the body’s cells by giving the cells energy. A hormone called insulin, which made in the pancreas, controls these sugar levels. Diabetes is caused by the body’s unwillingness to properly use insulin. If there is a large amount of the sugars in your body it can lead to other health complications. It is chronic and can affect the eyes, kidneys, nerves, and stomach. It can also cause strokes, heart disease, and could possibly make a person lose a limb. 

            To find out if someone has diabetes there are is a blood test run called and A1C. After the test is run then medication and lifestyle changes are to be made. People are told to exercise, change their diets, and stick to making sure you keep the sugars under control. There are pills that can be taken to keep things under control. There are shots that can be taken once a week and then there are insulin shots where a person has to actually add insulin to the body to control the sugars because the pancreas is not creating the insulin. 

            I was recently diagnosed with diabetes through my general practitioner doctor. I am on a medication that I take every night. I am in the process of making lifestyle changes as well. I don’t have a severe case of diabetes but it is enough that I need medical intervention. I am wearing a device that constantly checks my blood sugar and reports it back to an app on my phone, that way I am able to keep an accurate account of how my blood sugar is doing. Things are very much under control and I am doing well.