Diabetes is one of the most common illnesses in the UK, although fortunately with advances in modern medicine, it is also increasingly a manageable condition, especially if caught early.
What is Diabetes?
It is a condition where the blood's glucose count becomes too high because the body fails to use it properly - a symptom of a poorly functioning pancreas which is not producing sufficient insulin. It can also occur when the insulin that the pancreas is producing, is not working properly and this is known as insulin resistance.
What is the function of insulin?
Insulin helps the body's cells to absorb glucose and use it for energy. This glucose is taken from digesting carbohydrates from food and drink - such as starchy foods, fruit, sugar, dairy products and other sugar rich foods. Glucose can also be produced by the liver.
Types of Diabetes
There are two types of Diabetes, known as type 1 and type 2. The first occurs when the body stops producing insulin - when these cells are destroyed. It usually appears before 40 years of age and is particularly common in childhood. It is treatable by taking insulin by either pump or injection and lifestyle management such as regular exercise and a healthy diet.
Type 2 Diabetes occurs when the body fails to produce sufficient levels of insulin, or where the insulin produced is not working properly. It tends to appear in people aged 40 and above, although in black and South Asian people, it can more commonly appear from the age of 25. Increasingly younger people and children are developing this type of diabetes. It can be treated with exercise, a healthy diet and - where recommended - medication and/or insulin.
Symptoms
Undiagnosed Diabetes has a number of symptoms which can easily be confused with other conditions - these include an increased need to pass urine regularly - particularly at night, extreme tiredness, increased thirst, weight loss, regular thrush episodes, genital itching, blurred vision and slow healing of wounds.
Treating Diabetes
The aim of treatment is to manage blood glucose, blood fat and blood pressure levels within healthy targets as agreed with the patient's doctor. This will be managed alongside a healthy lifestyle, which will reduce the likelihood of developing other complications such as stroke, blindness, heart attack, nerve damage and kidney failure - all long-term risks of untreated Diabetes.
How many people have Diabetes in the UK?
There are believed to be over 2.6 million people with diabetes, but an expected additional figure of up to 500,000 people who will have the condition without realising it. 85% of these people will have type 2 diabetes and 15% will have type 1.
What is the purpose of National Diabetes Week?
Running from 13-19 June, National Diabetes Week aims to highlight the condition and raise awareness of the illness and its implications. Happily treatment advances have made it a more manageable condition, but with the severe long term complications if left untreated, the value of this particular week lies very much in helping people diagnose their symptoms and learn how a healthy lifestyle can prevent developing the illness in future.
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