Lifestyle-related diseases are seen as a problem in the present age, which is called the era of 100-year lifespans. Lifestyle-related diseases are diseases that develop in lifestyle habits such as eating and sleeping. In order to prevent such lifestyle-related diseases, upper limits and recommended amounts are set for nutrients such as lipids and sugars, and health checkups and nutritional guidance are conducted to improve. This time, I will explain diabetes, which is one of the lifestyle-related diseases that can become a serious illness if left untreated. If you want to be careful not to become a person who is diagnosed with diabetes, please refer to it.
Characteristics of diabetes
What kind of disease is diabetes?
It is one of the three major lifestyle-related diseases, and in simple terms, it is a disease that causes high blood sugar. When blood sugar rises, urine sugar contained in urine also rises, giving it a sweet smell. This is where the name “diabetes” comes from. Diabetes is classified as:
- Type 1
- Type 2
- Gestational diabetes
Other diseases such as liver disease or endocrine disease, or due to the effects of therapeutic agents
Treatment methods vary depending on the form, but basically it is said to be an incurable disease. If you give up and leave it alone, you may experience terrible symptoms such as complications, blindness, and body necrosis, so be careful. There is also a form called progressive type 1 diabetes, which begins in the same way as type 2 diabetes and progresses to type 1 diabetes.
What are the characteristics of type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes?
Type 1 develops due to various factors such as autoimmunity, viral infection, and drug-induced disease. Type 2 diabetes refers to acquired obesity and lifestyle-related diabetes. Type 2 can be effectively treated by improving lifestyle habits, but type 1 requires treatment with insulin injections because the body cannot produce insulin, a hormone that lowers blood sugar.
What Causes Diabetes?
As mentioned above, diabetes has different causes depending on which type of diabetes it is classified into. First, in the case of type 1, you have an immune disorder, such as an autoimmune disease, and your body is unable to produce the insulin it should normally produce. When blood sugar rises, our body normally releases a hormone called insulin to control the increase in blood sugar. But when this insulin is not made, blood sugar gradually increases causing diabetes. In the case of type 2 diabetes, the amount of insulin secreted decreases due to an increase in fat due to lifestyle habits such as obesity, resulting in diabetes. Gestational diabetes will be explained in detail later, but it is said that it is mainly caused by changes in the body’s function due to pregnancy.
I heard that diabetes can occur during pregnancy.
Although it is called gestational diabetes, the definition of gestational diabetes is known as “exceeding glucose metabolism that occurs first in pregnancy”. Gestational diabetes can affect all hats, so you need to be careful about what you eat during pregnancy. In particular, people with chronic diseases such as diabetes and obese people need to be tested because they are at high risk.
What are the symptoms of diabetes?
When you have diabetes, sugar thickens your blood and turns it into a chili pepper. Then our body will search for more water to lower the concentration of blood, and oral cancer bird’s eye view will occur. When you feel a strong bush, you drink a lot of water, and frequent urination symptoms appear, and if the symptoms progress further, you will experience significant weight loss and severe fatigue all over the body due to a decrease in insulin. Especially if severe fatigue and nausea occur, it is a very dangerous condition, so please see a doctor immediately.
Diagnosis and treatment of diabetes
What are the diagnostic criteria for diabetes?
Blood tests are used for diabetes, and the main diagnostic criteria include:
- Crude fasting blood glucose level: 126 mg/dL or higher
- Random blood glucose level: 200 mg/dL or more
- Hemoglobin A1c: 6.5% or more
- 75g oral glucose tolerance test: >200mg/dL
By the way, if you explain by item, the early morning fasting blood sugar level is measured in the early morning of the next morning after 8 hours or more after dinner. It is to check how much blood sugar level is in the state that nothing is ingested. On the other hand, random blood sugar level checks the blood sugar as it is, not tied to the time of day.
Hemoglobin A1c is a value that indicates how much of hemoglobin, which is one of proteins in red blood cells, is affected by blood sugar. The higher the value, the more hemoglobin is affected by blood sugar, and the more likely diabetes is. And the 75g oral glucose tolerance test is a test to see how you are doing two hours after ingesting 75g of glucose. In this way, the diagnosis of diabetes is made from the numerical values of all items.
What kind of treatment do you have for diabetes?
Treatment of diabetes is aimed at blood sugar control, not cure. Three things are done that way:
- meal
- exercise therapy
- drug therapy
It is important not only to restrict carbohydrates, but also to prevent sudden rises in blood sugar. If you eat vegetables first and carbohydrates last, the absorption of sugar will slow down and you can prevent a sudden rise in blood sugar. Chew the rest well to stimulate the satiety center and prevent overeating. Exercise therapy is particularly useful for type 2 diabetes, which is caused by lifestyle factors and obesity, as well as for people with type 1 diabetes. It is more effective by carrying out aerobic exercise along with muscle training.
Drug therapy consists mainly of oral hypoglycemic agents and self-administered insulin injections. There are many types of drugs that lower blood sugar, depending on the state and cause of diabetes. Oral medicine and insulin may be used in combination, so the method to be used depends on the patient’s condition.
Will the medicines I eat and insulin injections last a lifetime?
As explained at the beginning, diabetes is not a “sedative disease”. If you get it once, treatment will be given with the aim of “living together well” rather than “fixing”. Therefore, let’s think that we will be with diet and exercise therapy “forever”.
Diabetic patients generally have a weakened immune system. As a result, many people experience poor physical condition such as diarrhea and loss of appetite due to infectious diseases. Such a temporary state of poor physical condition is called Shikinden. On meal days, take foods that are easily digestible and consult a medical institution.
Diabetes Prevention and Precautions
How can I prevent diabetes?
Acquired type 2 diabetes is the most well known. Type 2 is mainly caused by obesity and lifestyle habits, so avoid excessive intake of carbohydrates and fats and exercise moderately. You can also expect early detection of diabetes through regular health checkups.
If I am diagnosed with diabetes, is there anything I should be careful about in my daily life and diet?
If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, you should not only take the prescribed medicines, but also pay attention to a diet that restricts carbohydrates based on the advice of a registered dietitian in nutritional guidance. Moderate exercise is also useful. I heard that if you have diabetes, you should be careful about complications. There are three complications that you may be concerned about if you have diabetes:
- retinopathy
- kidney
- neuropathy
In the worst case, retinopathy, in which you can see capillary hemorrhage in the eyes, can lead to blindness, so caution is required. Nephropathy is frightening because there are almost no subjective symptoms, and when you notice it, it is not uncommon to have kidney failure. Neuropathy can cause slimming and sensory paralysis, which can interfere with daily life. These are the three major complications of diabetes, and require early detection and early treatment.
Diabetes, a well-known disease, is a disease that requires attention because it is not good once you get it. If left untreated, the blood that is played with blood sugar can clog blood vessels and cause necrosis of a part of the body. In that case, the only way is amputation, so if you leave it alone, please recognize it as a disease that will greatly affect your future life.
What are the symptoms of panic disorder?
Conclusion
how was it? This time, I explained diabetes, which is one of the lifestyle-related diseases that are familiar to us. You must have known that if diabetes is left untreated, complications, blindness, partial amputation, etc. can be scary just by being aware that it is a disease that causes high blood sugar. Diabetes is a common disease that can be prevented through lifestyle changes. Review your daily habits and aim for a life that is unrelated to diabetes.
Intersted article for reference
Low blood pressure okay without treatment?
What is acute hypotension? when will it happen?
Do you know causes of myocardial infarction?