diabetes

Diabetes is a disease in which the patient's blood glucose, or blood sugar, levels are too high. Glucose comes from the foods the patient eats. Insulin is a hormone that helps the glucose get into your patient's cells to give them energy. 

Signs & Symptoms
Common symptoms of diabetes:
  • Urinating often
  • Feeling very thirsty
  • Feeling very hungry - even though you are eating
  • Extreme fatigue
  • Blurry vision
  • Cuts/bruises that are slow to heal
  • Weight loss - even though you are eating more (type 1)
  • Tingling, pain, or numbness in the hands/feet (type 2)

Risk Factors
Risk factors for diabetes depend on the type of diabetes. 
  • Type 1 diabetes risk factors:
    • A parent or sibling has type 1 diabetes
    • exposure to a viral illness likely play some role in type 1 diabetes
    • Sometimes family members of people with type 1 diabetes are tested for the presence of diabetes autoantibodies. If you have these autoantibodies, you have an increased risk of developing type 1 diabetes. But not everyone who has these autoantibodies develops diabetes
    • These include low vitamin D consumption, early exposure to cow's milk or cow's milk formula, and exposure to cereals before 4 months of age. None of these factors has been shown to directly cause type 1 diabetes
    • Certain countries, such as Finland and Sweden, have higher rates of type 1 diabetes
  • Type 2 diabetes risk factors:
    • Overweight or obesity
    • Lack of physcal activity
    • Parent or sibiling with type 2 diabetes
    • Certain races including blacks, Hispanics, American Indians and Asian-Americans are at higher risk
    • Age. Your risk increases as you get older. 
    • High blood pressure: over 140/90 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg)
    • Low levels of "good" cholesterol
Complications
  • Increased risk of coronary art disease (chest pain, heart attack, stroke)
  • Tingling in limbs
  • Numbness in limbs
  • Burning pain in limbs
  • Naseau
  • Vomiting
  • Kidney failure, dialysis, kindney transplant
  • Blindness and other vision complications (cataracts, glaucoma)
  • Poor blood flow to the feet
    • Cuts
    • Blisters
    • Toe, foot or leg amputation
  • Skin problems such as bacterial and fungal infections
  • Hearing problems
  • Type 2 diabetes may increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease. 

Communicable / Non-communicable
Non-communicable