Diabetes is a lifelong condition, and its prevalence is on the rise across the world. The condition occurs when a person’s blood glucose levels are abnormally high.
Type-1 Diabetes
In type-1 diabetes (the least common type) the cells in the pancreas gland, which normally produce insulin, are attacked by the immune system resulting in a total absence of insulin. This causes blood glucose levels to rise dramatically. It affects about 10 percent of all people with diabetes and normally occurs in childhood, but almost invariably under the age of 40.
Type-2 Diabetes
In type-2 diabetes, which affects 90 percent of people with the condition, either the body does not product sufficient insulin or the body has become less sensitive to its action. This form of diabetes is often associated with being overweight and is normally seen in the over 40s. A healthy lifestyle with fewer starchy foods and more regular exercise is always beneficial for people suffering from this form of diabetes. In type-2, lifestyle changes may even prevent the onset the diabetes in the first place.
How to Manage the Condition
Type-1 diabetes will always require regular injections of insulin, although this is not as daunting as it sounds. Most children quickly learn to painlessly inject and monitor their own blood sugars with the use of finger prick blood tests and glucose metres. Type-2 diabetes may be controlled through lifestyle measures and with a variety of medications that not only reduce blood sugar, but also reduce cholesterol and other blood fats also. In severe type-2 diabetes insulin may also be required.
Education, Education, Education
The Diabetic Health Care Team do a fabulous job of educating people about their condition and reassuring them that they can usually lead completely normal lives, in addition to showing them how to use the various treatments and blood testing metres. Regular checks ensure, as far as possible, that complications of the condition do not occur. Patients can also be instructed how to adjust their treatments when required.
The Good News
The best news to emerge in recent years is that for many type-2 diabetics, the adoption of a healthy lifestyle can not only prevent the condition, but can also help avoid or minimise the need for treatment. Some people have even been able to come off the medication altogether (with approval from their doctors).
PREVENTION IS BETTER…
The lifestyle we lead and environmental factors put some of us at a higher risk of developing type-2 diabetes. Here are a few of Dr Hilary’s top tips on how to minimiise your chances of developing the condition:
1. Eat regular meals
Skipping meals or eating one large meal a day makes appetite control difficult, and can have a detrimental effect on blood glucose levels, so you should aim to spread your calorie intake out over the day.
2. Regulate your carbohydrate intake
Carbohydrates and starchy foods are converted to sugar in your blood, and an excess will cause weight gain. Choose varieties of carbohydrate that are more slowly absorbed, or in other words, have a lower glycaemic index. Good sources include granary bread, wholemeal pastas, oats and sweet potatoes.
3. Cut down on fat
The body converts saturated fat to cholesterol, which can clot arteries and increase the risk of future heart disease and strokes, which diabetics are more prone too. Avoid full fat dairy by switching to semi-skimmed or skimmed milk.
4. Cut back on sugar
Sugar has the highest glycaemic index of all carbohydrates and boosts blood glucose very quickly. Opt for a sugar-free diet and avoid drinks with added sugars.
5. Avoid too much salt
Excess salt intake can raise your blood pressure, increasing the risk of strokes and heart attacks. Most of us consume more than the recommended 6 grams of salt per day, much of which often comes from processed foods. As such, it is best to reduce your reliance on pre-prepared foods where possible.
6. Monitor your alcohol intake
Not only is alcohol a carbohydrate, but it’s also harder to maintain motivation to stay on the straight and narrow if you’re feeling a little merry!
7. Control your portion sizes
It’s about quantity as well as quality, so try to moderate your portion sizes—even if they are healthy foods.
8. Stay active
Physical activity increases the amount of glucose used by your muscles for energy. In doing so it can reduce blood sugar levels that may be rising too high. Exercise also helps your body use insulin more efficiently.
Managing Type-1 Diabetes
If you have Type-1 Diabetes you will need to take insulin injections for the rest of your life. Managing Type-1 Diabetes not only means monitoring your blood sugar levels and leading a healthy lifestyle, but learning enough about your condition to make small changes where necessary so you feel confident about the management of your own treatment.
Using a finger prick device to check your blood sugar levels at regular intervals and a blood glucose testing metre to provide immediate results makes a huge difference to controlling your condition and avoiding complications. The aim is that you lead as normal an active a life as possible, avoiding complications and become the master of your own disorder.
When you are first diagnosed with Type-1 Diabetes you will be referred to the Specialist Diabetes Care Team, who will help you to understand the condition and give you the ability to closer monitor your progress. Since your body can’t produce any insulin at all, you will need to have regular insulin injections to keep your blood glucose levels within a satisfactory range. Gradually you will to learn how to match the insulin you inject into the food you consume, taking into account your blood glucose levels at all times and how much exercise you are doing. It is a skill that comes with time, needs to be practiced and constantly improved. There are even courses that teach these special skills.
Avoidance of Complications
Tight control of your blood sugar levels help you to feel well at all times, and prevent potential long-term complications such as kidney disease, visual problems, heart attacks, strokes and arterial narrowing as long as possible.
Living with Diabetes
Providing you learn as much about your condition as possible and control your blood sugars strictly you can minimise your risk of developing complications. This means eating a well-balanced diet, exercising regularly and avoiding behaviours that worsen the risk of complications. Stopping smoking will reduce your risk of heart and circulatory disease, and adopting an overall healthy lifestyle means that living with type-1 diabetes may be no more than a minor social inconvenience rather than a chronic long-term health condition.
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