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GP, Alice Fitzgibbon revisits a very common condition
Diabetes is disease that causes the body’s blood sugar level to be too high. Blood sugar levels are controlled by a substance called insulin which is produced in the pancreas gland. There are two main types of diabetes, type 1 and type 2, although multiple sub-types also exist.
In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas stops producing insulin. There is nothing you can do to prevent type 1 diabetes as it is often down to your genes if you will develop it and people are often diagnosed in childhood. The treatment for this is replacing insulin by injections.
In type 2 diabetes, the pancreas may produce less insulin, but the cells of the body also stop reacting to it – so called “insulin resistance”. Type 2 diabetes is far more common than type 1 and if it is detected early it can be controlled and managed, often with a combination of diet, exercise and medications. As diabetes can get worse over time, some people with type 2 diabetes may need treatment with injectable medications or insulin too.
Diabetes affects the whole body. High blood sugar levels in the body over a long period of time causes damage, especially to the eyes, kidneys, the blood vessels in your legs and your heart. We know that people with diabetes may develop sight problems, kidney failure, circulation problems and are more likely to have heart attacks.
The negative impact of diabetes can happen slowly over time with no outward signs it is occurring until it is too late. This is why, if you have diabetes, you will get an annual eye check and blood tests to check for problems you may be unaware of. Controlling the blood sugar levels with medicines can prevent or delay this damage from happening – tight control of blood sugars to ensure they are a normal level is vital in this long-term condition.
So, who is at risk of developing diabetes? Let’s look at type 2 diabetes and here are some of the main risk factors:
- Age – it is more common in older people
- Family history – if a parent, sibling or child has type 2 diabetes you are between two and six times more likely to get it
- Ethnicity – it is more common in people with South Asian descent and African-Caribbean or Black African descent
- Having high blood pressure
- Being overweight
Some people with type 2 diabetes may not have any really obvious symptoms. Symptoms can be vague and are related to the high blood sugar levels. These can include:
- Increased thirst and drinking more
- Passing urine more frequently
- Feeling tired
- Losing weight
- Blurred vision
- Recurrent infections such as thrush
- Slow healing of cuts and wounds
If someone is high risk for diabetes, they might have screening blood tests each year to detect if they are developing the condition. Blood tests for diabetes look at the average blood sugar level. This is a test called HbA1c. Depending on the result it can tell if the blood sugar is too high (meaning diabetes), raised (meaning pre-diabetes) or normal.
If you have high or raised result, it is really important to follow this up with the GP or practice nurse as this is the ideal time to make lifestyle changes such as weight loss and diet changes, to stop diabetes developing. If you want to calculate your individual risk of developing type 2 diabetes, there is a risk calculator online at How to prevent type 2 diabetes | Diabetes UK.
If you have any symptoms of diabetes, it is important that you see your GP to discuss them. Early diagnosis, prompt treatment and tight control of blood sugars is the best way to limit the damage and complications from happening.
For more information on diabetes from the NHS visit Diabetes – NHS (www.nhs.uk).
