General overview of diabetes
This is for overview of diabetes. According to statistics, India accounts for about 17% of diabetics globally. The disease has caused more than 144,00 deaths from 2017 to 2021. If not well controlled, it can cause many acute and chronic complications. Especially complications of the nervous system and blood vessels.
What is diabetes? Overview of diabetes
Diabetes is one of the diseases related to insulin problems. Normally, the pancreas produces insulin to help the body store and use sugar and fat from food. The disease appears when:
- The pancreas cannot produce insulin
- The pancreas produces very little insulin
- The body does not respond appropriately to insulin, also known as “insulin resistance”.
Diabetes is a chronic disease, currently there is a cure for it completely. However, symptoms and complications of the disease can be controlled by following your doctor's treatment and incorporating proper nutrition and exercise.
Thirst and drinking water frequently are easily recognizable signs in people with diabetes
What are the symptoms of diabetes?
In general, typical symptoms of diabetes are as follows:
- Frequent urination (polyuria)
- Dry mouth, drinking a lot (or thirsty and drinking lots of water)
- Sudden weight loss
- Fatigue easily (feeling weak, tired)
- Reduced vision (blurred vision or eye strain)
- Difficulty breathing, heavy breathing
- Loss of consciousness (this condition is very rare)
When is diabetes really dangerous?
According to Diabetes Endocrinology experts, overview of diabetes, diabetes 2 is one of the most dangerous diseases (after cardiovascular disease and cancer), the death rate due to this disease is up to 70%. Of these, the death rate from complications such as coronary artery disease is 1.8 times higher and stroke is 2.4 times higher.
As blood sugar levels increase, blood becomes thicker, putting greater pressure on blood vessels. This phenomenon will cause many complications in the long term and this is the scary point of this chronic disease.
In particular, most complications of diabetes are related to capillaries and depending on the case, the patient may lose vision or even have limb necrosis.
Classification of diabetes
Depending on the cause of the disease, diabetes can be divided into 3 basic types:
– Type 1 diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is a disease caused by the destruction of the β-cells of the pancreas that secrete insulin. This is a disease with a high onset rate in children and adolescents, characterized by often sudden development and rapid progression.
In addition, the initial symptoms of the disease are very similar to a cold, but later other symptoms appear such as thirst, frequent urination, and sudden weight loss.