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Basics About Diabetes
What is diabetes? Diabetes is a disease in which blood glucose levels are above normal. Most of the food we eat is turned into glucose, or sugar, for our bodies to use for energy. The pancreas, an organ that lies near the stomach, makes a hormone called insulin to help glucose get into the cells of our bodies. When you have diabetes, your body either doesn't make enough insulin or can't use its own insulin as well as it should. This causes sugar to build up in your blood. Diabetes can cause serious health complications including heart disease, blindness, kidney failure, and lower-extremity amputations. Diabetes is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States. What are the symptoms of diabetes? People who think they might have diabetes must visit a physician for diagnosis. They might have SOME or NONE of the following symptoms: Frequent urination Excessive thirst Unexplained weight loss Extreme hunger Sudden vision changes Read More... -
Diabetes Self-Care - Managing Low Blood Sugar
Low blood sugar is called hypoglycemia. Blood sugar below 70 mg/dl is considered low, and blood sugars at this level can harm you. If you have diabetes and are taking any of the following diabetes medications, you have a risk for low blood sugar for hypoglycemia: Insulin Chlorpropamide (Diabinese), tolazamide (Tolinase), acetohexamide (Dymelor), glipizide (Glucotrol), or tolbutamide (Orinase), Glyburide (Micronase), glimepiride (Amaryl), and repaglinide (Prandin), nateglinide (Starlix), and mitiglinide. (The risk with these drugs is lower but still possible.) Recognizing Low Blood Sugar Know how to recognize when your blood sugar is getting low. Symptoms are: Weakness Feeling tired Shaking Sweating Headache Hunger Nervousness or anxiety Feeling irritable Unclear thinking Double or blurry vision Feeling uneasy Fast or pounding heartbeat Sometime Read More... -
Diabetes Medication
Diabetes means your blood glucose, or blood sugar, is too high. If you can't control your diabetes with wise food choices and physical activity, you may need diabetes medicines. The kind of medicine you take depends on your type of diabetes, your schedule, and your other health conditions. With Type 1 diabetes, your pancreas does not make insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps glucose get into your cells to give them energy. Without insulin, too much glucose stays in your blood. If you have type 1 diabetes, you will need to take insulin. Type 2 diabetes, the most common type, can start when the body doesn't use insulin as it should. If your body can't keep up with the need for insulin, you may need to take pills. Some people need both insulin and pills. Along with meal planning and physical activity, diabetes pills help people with type 2 diabetes or gestational diabetes keep their blood glucose levels on target. Several kinds of pills are available. Each works in a different w Read More...
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