Diabetes Mellitus

Diabetes Mellitus



Diabetes mellitus is a condition in which the body either does not produce enough, or does not properly respond to, insulin, a hormone produced in the pancreas. In diabetes, the body either fails to properly respond to its own insulin, does not make enough insulin, or both.

Symptoms

• Flu-like symptoms. Diabetes can sometimes feel like a viral illness, withfatigue, weakness and loss of appetite.
• Excessive thirst
 
• Weight gain or loss. Because your body is trying to compensate for lost fluids and sugar, you may eat more than usual and gain weight. But the opposite also can occur. 
• Blurred vision. High levels of blood sugar pull fluid out of the tissues in your body including the lenses of your eyes. This affects your abilityto focus. Once your diabetes is treated and your blood sugar levels drop, your vision should improve. Over a period of years, however, diabetes can also cause new blood vessels to form in your retina the back part of your eye as well as damage old vessels. For most people this causes only mild vision problems. But for others, the effects may be much more serious. In some cases, diabetes can leadto blindness.
 
• Slow-healing sores or frequent infections. Diabetes affects your body's ability to heal and fight infection. Bladder and vaginal infections can be a particular problem for women.
 
• Nerve damage (neuropathy). Excess sugar in your blood can damage the small blood vessels to your nerves, leading to a number of symptoms. The most common are tingling and lossof sensation in your hands and especially your feet. 
• Red, swollen, tender gums. Diabetes increases the risk of infection in your gums and in the bones that hold your teeth in place. As a result, your gums may pull away from your teeth, your teeth may become loose, or you may develop sores or pockets of pus in your gums. This is especially true if you have a gum infection before the onsetof diabetes.










Preventions

• We can prevent Diabetes Mellitus by eating a healthy diet

• Regular exercise leading to weight loss.

• By avoiding Night Eating Syndrome

• By Including more fiber in your diet

• By getting regular blood sugar tests

• By getting enough night sleep and cut back stress

• By cutting down your bedtime sugarsStudies have also shown that medications have been successful in preventing diabetes in some population groups. In the Diabetes Prevention Program, people treated with the drug metformin reduced their risk of developing diabetes by 31% over 3 years. Treatment with metformin was most effective among younger, heavier people (those 25-40 years of age who were 50 to 80 pounds overweight) andless effective among older people and people who were not as overweight. Similarly, in the STOP-NIDDM Trial, treatment of people with IGT with the drug acarbose reduced the risk of developing diabetes by 25% over 3 years. Other medication studies are ongoing. In addition to preventing progression from IGT to diabetes, both lifestyle changes and medication have also been shown to increase theprobability of reverting from IGT to normal glucose tolerance
There are no known methods to prevent type 1 diabetes. Several clinical trials are currently in progress or being planned.
Treatment

• Monitoring blood sugar
controlling your blood sugar is essential to feeling healthy and avoiding long-term complications of diabetes. Some people are able to control their blood sugar with dietand exercise alone. Others may need to use insulin or other medications in addition to lifestyle changes. In either case, monitoring your blood sugar is a key part of your treatment program.

• A healthy diet
Contrary to popular myth, there's no "diabetes diet." Furthermore, having diabetes doesn't mean you have to eat only bland, boring foods. Instead, it means you'll eat more...