Diabetes is caused by the presence of excess glucose in the blood. This happens when the body fails to produce enough insulin to convert the glucose (or fails to use the insulin it produces effectively). If left untreated, diabetes may lead to organ damage, kidney failure, loss of sight, heart diseases, stroke and many more.
Here are the different types of diabetes and their symptoms:
Type-1 diabetes
Type-1 diabetes is not very common but it is the most severe; its exact causes are unknown and symptoms show up within a few days. This condition is prevalent in children and young adults and it happens when the immune system attacks the pancreatic cells that produce insulin. Symptoms include sudden weight loss, nausea and vomiting, fatigue, constant urination, itchy skin, dry mouth, and blurred vision.
Pre-diabetes
This happens when you have high levels of blood sugar, but not enough to be termed as diabetic. There aren’t many warning signs for pre-diabetes and most people that suffer from the condition don’t show any symptoms. You will need to do a test to see if your blood glucose levels are too high. However, people that are 45 years (or older) and overweight are high-risk for pre-diabetes.
If undiagnosed, pre-diabetes may eventually lead to type-2 but increased physical activity and weight loss have been known to slow this condition down considerably.
Type-2 diabetes
As mentioned earlier, if pre-diabetes is left untreated, it often leads to Type-2 diabetes. Common symptoms are dry mouth, slow healing, yeast infection, increased hunger and thirst, fatigue, headaches, blurred vision, itchy skin, incessant urination and so on. People with a high risk of developing Type-2 diabetes include the overweight, young adults (45 years or older), the physically inactive, and people with a family history of diabetes.
If you are showing any of the following symptoms and you think you may have diabetes, please visit your family doctor. The quicker you are able to get ahead of it, the higher your chances of mitigating it.