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What
Complications Can Diabetes Bring? Diabetes (diabetes mellitus) is a kind of disease in which a high blood sugar level is found in a person’s body because of the body’s inability to produce and/or use insulin. Insulin is a hormone that would convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. Basically, there are 3 types of diabetes, namely, Type-1, Type-2 and Gestational Diabetes. Type-1 diabetes is usually diagnosed in children and young adults, and was previously known as juvenile diabetes. People with Type-1 diabetes do not produce insulin. Only 5 percent of diabetics belong to this category. Gestational diabetes only occurs during pregnancy (usually around the 24th week) for some women. It is not a permanent condition; meaning women who had it during pregnancy would not have it after giving birth. The majority of diabetics belong to Type-2 diabetes, in which the body does not produce enough insulin or the cells ignore the insulin. Insulin is supposed to take sugar from the blood into the cells. When glucose does not go into the cells and builds up in the blood, it can lead to many complications including kidney disease, heart disease, hypertension (high blood pressure), stroke, eye disease and skin problems.
There are more than 300 million people develop Type-2 diabetes around the world. It has risen by 10 folds in 30 years. The disease does not limited to older folks. It affects young people, too. Statistics showed that there has been a 10-fold increase for those who are below 20 years old in the last decade. The reason that causes epidemic is that people are getting fatter and not exercising enough. A study of 4,500 people in Singapore showed that many diabetics ended up with kidney disease. In fact, 1 in 3 diabetic patients have reduced kidney functions. For the last 6 years, there has been a 50 percent increase in Type-2 diabetes following the rising trend of obesity. Over time, high sugar level in the blood can damage blood vessels: small vessels in the nerve, eyes and kidneys and the larger vessels in the heart and brain. However, experts believe the risk of getting small vessel problems can be reduced by almost 40 percent over a 10-year period and cardiovascular disease by about 20 percent with good glucose control. If people with diabetes can have good blood pressure, good cholesterol control and not smoking, their risk of getting cardiovascular disease can further be reduced by up to 70 percent. Besides changing diet and exercising regularly, most patients have to take medications from different classes to manage the condition. But there are side effects from these medications, for instance, weight gain. Drugs like sulphonylureas and insulin can cause hypoglycemia, a condition in which the sugar levels going too low. This can be very distressing and even dangerous. Hypoglycemia occurs because more than required insulin is in the body. This could happen when people are having insulin injections but not eating enough. Diabetes is a progressive disease. Even it can be detected and controlled at an early stage, the natural history of the disease cannot be altered. It will progress over time since no drug can cure or prevent it. The only thing that can be done is to reduce the risk of complications. Natural history refers to the beta cells in the pancreas, which produce insulin, becoming more dysfunctional over time. This process cannot be changed with drugs, but glucose can be managed more effectively with diabetes medications, hence reducing the risks of complications. It is estimated that half of people who have diabetes without realizing it for years. This is because the disease does not have any significant symptoms in the early stages unless it is screened for. By the time when it is detected, there could already be some complications. But one thing is sure: the earlier diabetes is detected, the less likelihood of its long-term complications. It is certainly true for diabetes’ effect on kidneys. For people who develop diabetes at younger age means they will lose more life years from the complications of diabetes.
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