Prediabetes is a warning indication that type 2 diabetes, which is known to affect every one out of 3 American adults, may be your future. Typically, this indicates that your blood sugar is greater than normal, but it is high enough to form a type 2 diagnosis.
Luckily, the prediabetes stage does not have any severe symptoms. One can say that it is a call to action. The human body is fighting to maintain blood glucose levels in a safe range. Can diabetes kill you? Yes! You should start making serious adjustments in your food and lifestyle to avoid your blood sugar from increasing and developing into type 2.
Prediabetes: What is the cause?
Insulin is a pancreatic hormone that aids in the conversion of glucose into usable energy. Carbohydrates in meals are converted to glucose in the body, which is often referred to as blood sugar.
That glucose remains in your bloodstream until the pancreas produces insulin. The insulin works like a key that unlocks your cells to enable the glucose to enter, and it’s then utilized to power your body. When you don’t have insulin or your insulin doesn’t work correctly, glucose builds up in your system and raises your blood sugar.
During type 2 diabetes, the pancreas may still make insulin, but that insulin progressively becomes less efficient at getting the glucose into your cells.
Having prediabetes means your body isn’t utilizing insulin as effectively as it should be, and this is a warning sign. To put it another way, your body is beginning to reject insulin. You develop prediabetes and type 2 diabetes if your body does not respond to insulin. Insulin resistance occurs when your body does not respond to insulin. Learn more about prediabetes at Rolling Paper which describes several of the early symptoms below.
Early signs and symptoms
The following are the early symptoms of diabetes:
Frequent urination
A person’s kidneys try to filter excess sugar from the blood when it’s high since high blood sugar causes them to work harder. Peeing more often, particularly at night, maybe a result.
Increased thirst
The body may lose more water as a consequence of having to pee more often to remove the excess sugar from the blood. This may cause dehydration over time, making you thirstier than normal.
Always feeling hungry
People with diabetes frequently do not receive enough energy and power from the food they consume.
Food is broken down by the digestive system into a simple sugar known as glucose and the body uses it as fuel. People with diabetes cannot get enough glucose into their cells from the bloodstream. As a consequence, individuals with type 2 diabetes typically feel continuously hungry, despite how recently they have eaten something.
Feeling very tired
Diabetes of type 2 may influence a person’s energy levels and lead them to feel extremely weary or exhausted. This fatigue happens as a consequence of inadequate sugar flowing from the circulation into the cells of your body.
Blurry vision
An overabundance of sugar in the blood may damage the small blood vessels in the eyes, which in return cause hazy vision. Such blurry or foggy vision may affect one or both eyes, and it may come and go.
If a diabetic individual does not get treatment, the damage to their blood vessels will worsen and they will lose their eyesight permanently.
Slow healing of wounds and cuts
Blood sugar levels that are too high may damage neurons and blood vessels in the body, causing problems with circulation. Wounds and cuts may take weeks or sometimes months to heal because of this. Infection is more likely when a wound heals slowly.
Numbness, Tingling, or pain in the feet or hands
High blood sugar levels may disrupt blood circulation and harm the body’s nerves. In individuals with type 2 diabetes, this may lead to discomfort or a feeling of numbness or tingling in the feet and hands.
This disease is called neuropathy, and it may develop over time and lead to more severe problems if a person does not receive treatment for their diabetes timely.
Patches of dark skin
The patches of black skin developing on the creases of the neck, armpit, or groin may potentially indicate a greater risk of diabetes. These areas may feel extremely smooth and silky.
This skin disease is known as acanthosis nigricans.
Yeast infections and itching
Excess sugar in your blood and urine provides food for yeast, which may lead to infection. Such Yeast infections tend to develop on warm, moist regions of the skin, which include armpits, genital areas, and the mouth.
The afflicted regions are typically itchy, but a person may also feel burning, redness, and pain.
Importance of early diagnosis
Recognizing the early symptoms of type 2 diabetes may enable a person to receive a diagnosis and treatment. Getting proper therapy, adopting lifestyle adjustments, and managing blood sugar levels may significantly improve health and quality of life and decrease the chance of problems.
Without treatment, chronically high blood sugar levels may lead to serious and potentially life-threatening consequences, including:
- eye disease or loss of vision
- foot problems
- heart disease
- kidney disease
- nerve damage, or neuropathy
- sexual problems in both women and men
- stroke
Hyperosmolar hyperglycemic nonketotic syndrome, which causes a significant and prolonged rise in blood sugar levels, may develop if diabetes is left untreated. HHNS is often brought on by sickness or infection, and it may need a trip to the hospital. Most often, this unexpected problem affects the elderly.
Some of these problems may be avoided by controlling blood sugar levels. Without proper management of blood sugar levels, people are more likely to develop other health issues.
Risk factors for Diabetes
Type 2 diabetes may strike anybody, although certain people are at more risk than others. These are some of the danger factors:
- being 45 years old or above
- being of African American, Alaska Native, Hispanic or Latino, American Indian, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander descent
- being overweight or obese
- having a family medical history of diabetes
- eating an unhealthful diet
- having a medical history of stroke, heart diseases or gestational diabetes
- having polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)
- having prediabetes
- living a sedentary lifestyle
Diabetes is a Silent Pandemic
Can diabetes kill you? Yes! The silent pandemic takes the lives of 4.2 million people per year, nearly three times the number of people killed by COVID-19 combined. Experts estimate that by 2045, one in every ten of us will have diabetes.
According to the International Diabetes Federation’s latest estimates, there are now 463 million individuals worldwide who have diabetes. By 2045, that number is expected to increase to over 700 million (IDF). Currently, it ranks as one of the world’s top ten leading causes of death.
Takeaway
High blood sugar levels are a symptom of type 2 diabetes, which is very prevalent. You may have frequent urination, increased thirst and hunger as well as eyesight issues, delayed wound healing, and yeast infections in the early stages of the disease.
Diabetics should visit a doctor if they have any of the symptoms listed above, particularly if they have additional risk factors for the disease. The earlier type 2 diabetes is detected and treated, the better the patient’s quality of life is likely to be and the lower the chance of serious complications.
