Article by Peter Hutch
Refers to diabetes mellitus or, less often, to diabetes insipidus. Diabetes mellitus and diabetes insipidus share the name “diabetes” because they are both conditions characterized by excessive urination (polyuria).
Diabetes Causes
Drugs such as steroids, Dilantin, and others may elevate the blood sugar through a variety of mechanisms. Certain other drugs, such as alloxan, streptozocin, and thiazide diuretics, are toxic to the beta cells of the pancreas and can cause diabetes. Certain syndromes (for example, Prader-Willi, Down’s, Progeria, and Turner’s) may result in a hyperglycemic state; if this state is prolonged, the result can be permanent diabetes.
Diabetes Treatment
The major goal in treating diabetes is to minimize any elevation of blood sugar (glucose) without causing abnormally low levels of blood sugar. Type 1 diabetes is treated with insulin, exercise, and a diabetic diet. Type 2 diabetes is treated first with weight reduction, a diabetic diet, and exercise. When these measures fail to control the elevated blood sugars, oral medications are used. If oral medications are still insufficient, treatment with insulin is considered.
Adherence to a diabetic diet is an important aspect of controlling elevated blood sugar in patients with diabetes. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) has provided guidelines for a diabetic diet. The ADA diet is a balanced, nutritious diet that is low in fat, cholesterol, and simple sugars. Weight reduction and exercise are important treatments for diabetes. Weight reduction and exercise increase the body’s sensitivity to insulin, thus helping to control blood sugar elevations. For more, please read the Weight Loss and Fitness articles.
Diabetes Remedies
Bittermelon (karela) is one of the best options 21. Srivastava Y, Venkatakrishna-bhatt H, Verma Y, et al. Antidiabetic and adaptogenic properties of Momordica charantia extract: An experimental and clinical evaluation. Phytother Res 1993;7:285—9.. It can be simply fried with salt and other condiments and can be taken 2-3 daily. Half-cup karela juice can also be taken. Take 15 fresh mango leaves and boil them in 1 glass of water. Keep them overnight. Filter and drink the next morning.
Diabetes Symptoms
Flu-like feelingSometimes diabetes symptoms resemble a flu-like illness. You may notice fatigue, weakness and loss of appetite. That’s because poorly controlled diabetes hampers your body’s ability to use sugar for energy. Instead of fueling your cells, the sugar remains in your blood. This leaves you feeling tired and run down.symptoms may go unnoticed for years, and only when complications of diabetes – such as foot ulceration or blurred vision occur – is diabetes diagnosed. Remember that all the symptoms may not be present. Whenever any of these symptoms arise, it’s important to be tested for diabetes.It is very helpful to evaluate symptoms and signs in diagnosing the causes of health problems and in monitoring the status of diagnosed diseases. Moreover, assessment of symptoms and signs is important during treatment with medications in order to determine the effectiveness of treatment and the development of side effects.
Article by Tehmina Mazher
Diabetes can be a real pain at times. However, there is a lot that one can do to minimize that pain. Everything a diabetic need is to get started properly with the things he must do to keep his disease under control.
The ten techniques I have discussed here are a major part of what excellent care for diabetes is all about. Other things need to be done as well, but if you follow through one these ten, whether you’re the parent of a diabetic patient or diabetic yourself, the others will fall into place.
* The positive belief that what you’re doing is helpful for you in the long-run. The power of positive thinking is an important tool that help diabetics to do everything knowing that their efforts will bear fruit in the form of a long and healthy life * With modern methods available for management of the long term complications of diabetes, it’s sad, unfortunate, and unnecessary for a patient with diabetes to lose his sight or his kidney function because he wasn’t tested early. For every potential long-term complication due to diabetes, there is an excellent test or study that can discover it when it’s still at a reversible stage. * Diabetes is a “hot” disease right now, mostly because of the surge in cases of type 2 diabetes Diabetes journals that used to be thin are not thick with new information.Every day you will learn something new about diabetes. With proper knowledge diabetics can fight diabetes very easily. * Careful management of the diet in diabetes has been shown repeatedly to lower the hemoglobin A1c by 1 percent or more. And every 1 percent drop in hemoglobin A1c causes a large decrease in the risk of micro vascular complications like retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy. * The diabetics who do the most exercise gets least complications. Exercise has so many positive aspects to it and such a minimal downside that it should be your routine brushing teeth. * Most of the time poor diabetic control has little to do with problems that are outside the control of the person with diabetes and has everything to do with not taking medications, not testing the blood glucose, not following a nutritional plan, and not exercising. There are all kinds of alarms and monitors you can set up to prompt yourself to take insulin.The bottom line is that the best treatments in the world are of little value if you don’t use them. * The eye is the one organ that allows doctors to see directly into the brain – what they see happening in the tissues of the eye is probably happening in the brain as well. Doctors have wonderful tools for viewing and photographing the eyes and for treating any damage that occurs to them. Make sure that you have yearly eye examinations from an eye doctor or optometrist. Abnormalities can be spotted early, and treatment preserves vision. * Home testing of the blood glucose is a truly valuable tool that has made an enormous difference in the successful management of diabetes. It’s truly amazing that you can know your blood glucose in 5 seconds with less than a drop of blood. * One of the sad consequences of diabetes that should never occur is an amputation of the foot. Amputations are preventable, but they occur when relatively minor foot problems, especially ulcers of the foot, aren’t caught and managed early. Ultimately, foot ulcers should never develop in the first place. * Planning is the key if you’re going to keep your diabetes under excellent control. Think about what you will be exposed to in advance, and smooth the way. Consider doing dry runs to prepare for potentially difficult situations. Practicing how you’ll handle situations before they arise makes it a lot easier to function when you’re faced with the real thing.
By simply following the above mentioned tips one can easily manage the diabetes.
Diabetes can be managed and even reversed. I have also reversed it. Just follow these links- Diabetes Information and Diabetes Cure reverse your diabetes Also get a free e-book.
I am a gynaecologist by profession, married and have a cute little daughter.My passion in life is to help diabetics, acne sufferers and pregnant womens.
Article by Yogi
Everyone and anyone can develop diabetes. Doesnt matter how old you are, your ethnicity, nor what you do for a living. Although food is a key element in controlling our diabetes, it is NOT the sole cause of our disease. One thing that really frustrates me about the medical community, is that they have taken the use of labels, and has used them in such a manner, that eventually caused the world to see diabetics as a stereotype. What makes us a Type 1, 2, LADA, or gestational diabetic, isnt how we look, but what happens in our individual bodies that make us the type of diabetic we are. There are heavy type 1?s, as well as slim; It is also true that their are skinny type 2?s, as well as there are heavy. Unfortunately, newly diagnosed diabetics are often caught-up in the middle of this, therefore indirectly making learning extremely difficult. To my awareness, never have I heard any other disease were labels are used so frequently.
Millions more are continuously being diagnosed each year around the globe. This was never just an American Disease. Yet, our communities know even less now about diabetes than we did before. Why is this? Are doctors up to par with the latest diabetic information? Is it that diabetics are not motivated? Are we scared? Or does there still exist a distrust for doctors in general? I think in this day in age, it is even more imperative that diabetics emotionally support each other. Diabetes is a 24 hour job, most of us cant live life one day without thinking something diabetic; be it counting carbs, or the financial strain of being able to afford our diabetic supplies.
I realize that its important for diabetics to have role models, which is part of the reason why I started this blog. Particularly in the poorer communities, we only hear the bad stuff about diabetes. You almost never hear about people such as myself, who at a young age developed full blown cataracts, and successfully came out of both surgeries with flying colors!! Youd never hear how people like me (at the final stages of cataracts (before my surgeries)) used shapes, sounds, kindness of strangers, and pure determination to find were I needed to go. You dont hear about diabetics being well informed enough to challenge their doctors methods. You dont hear about people literally reversing their diabetic complications. You dont hear about people eating what they want (responsibly) and still manage to control their sugars. You do not hear about diabetics successfully controlling their blood pressure. You dont hear about diabetics who are getting up and walking to literally save their lives. This is why I personally believe that so many of us lost our battles to this disease, in addition to the fact that so many of us cant break out of our comfort zones. Comfort zones destroy any chances of self motivation.
Ive gone through great lengths to share pieces of my life to the world, because I want people to know they can do it. Diabetes is not the doom and gloom we all thought once was. I am a living, fresh and blood proof that you can overcome with just a tiny bit of motivation. The goal is not to be a perfect diabetic, but simply make better choices; but you cant make better choices, if your not informed about YOUR particular, and very individual diabetes. Controlling your diabetes takes a lot of personal soul searching, a lot of reading, a lot of listening, and a lot of discerning. People would ask me all the time how do you know this? or how do you know that? My answer to this has always been, diabetic information is not esoteric! In other words, diabetic knowledge is not sacred text locked away somewhere so that only great scholars can read it. Diabetic information is everywhere!! If you really wanted to know something about diabetes, you can easily find it with a click of the mouse, a phone call, a book, a magazine, a support group, a nurse, a doctor, a CDE, a nutritionist, the list goes on. Its not anyones responsibility to tell you, YOU have to seek it for yourself!!!
© 2010 DiabeticRadio.com
Yogi is creator of DiabeticRadio.com; a blog dedicated to all things diabetic. Many valuable resources, links, web interviews, Youtube videos, podcasts, personal experiences and more. My goal is to as much information about diabetes as possible. My blog is always evolving and growing.
I have lived with diabetes all my life (43+ yrs); became insulin dependent in 2009. I’ve overcame many diabetic challenges and almost all my diabetic complications thus far; through faith, emotional endurance; and the willingness and desire for self-education.
Diabetes is no easy thing, therefore, I have created a blog to tell my story. This is my contribution to the diabetic community. Don’t forget to look for me on itunes too!!
Article by Elvira Filinovich
Diabetes is a disease associated with the bodys inability to produce the required amount of insulin or the inability of the body cells to use the produced insulin. In either case glucose level builds up in our blood leading to diabetes. The hormone insulin secreted by the pancreas is actually a glucose regulator. It activates the cells to burn down the glucose, absorb it and convert it in to energy required by the body for day to day acts. If insulin produced falls short of the required amount, as in the case of Type 1 diabetes, one has to inject insulin to combat the disease. Type 1 diabetes is also known as juvenile diabetes. Type 2 diabetes occurs when cells grow non-reactive to insulin. This is the commonest type of diabetes attacking adults. Poor nutritional habits, inactive lifestyle, obesity are factors leading to Type 2 diabetes. Gestational diabetes is another type affecting pregnant women.
Major Symptoms of Adult Diabetes
1. Frequent urination is a prominent symptom of adult diabetes. One feels a fullness of bladder even after excreting urine. This happens because the body of a patient of diabetes tries to flush out fluids through kidneys in order to balance and dilute the high levels of glucose in the patients urine.
2. Constant thirst is usually felt by a diabetic. Due to increased urination, the body needs to replace the lost fluids and the result is feeling thirsty frequently. Not taking water may lead to dehydration and further complications.
3. Feeling extremely hungry frequently is another major symptom. The body cells become inert to insulin, and the cells do not get glucose to convert into cells. The starved cells make the feel a persistent hunger.
4. Excessive loss of fluids, reversed metabolism of body fats and proteins lead to loss of weight drastically. Thus weight loss is another symptom.
5. Muscles cells are deprived of enough fuel to convert it in to energy in a diabetic. Often body fat is consumed due to a reverse calorie effect, leading to much fatigue. Fatigue is common symptom of diabetes.
6. Vomiting and nausea is a symptom that occurs when ketone acid builds up in blood due to the reverse calorie effect.
7. Irritability is common in a diabetic. Inadequate glucose supply to brain may make the patient suffer from excessive mood swings or feel cranky.
8. A diabetic also suffers from blurry vision. Excessive glucose may get in to eyes changing the shape and create problems in focusing.
9. Poor wound healing is also a symptom. Excess glucose in blood lowers the production of white blood cells and thereby weakens the immune system. This leads to very slow healing of wounds.
10. A diabetic is more prone to any infections due to the suppression of the immune system.
11. A diabetic may feel an itching sensation on the skin around genitals.
12. A feeling of numbness or a tingling sensation on legs, feet and finger is another symptom a diabetic may suffer from.
To control diabetes, one must take regular herbal supplements such as Diabkil capsules. Herbal supplements are useful in controlling diabetes without any side effects.
Read about Diabetes Natural Treatment and its benefits. Know about Diabetes Supplement. Find how Diabetes Supplements help lower blood sugar naturally.
Elvira Filinovich
Article by ReBuilder Medical Treatment
Fact: Diabetics who also suffer from peripheral diabetic neuropathy and nerve damage in the legs and feet are now around 60% of the population and growing.
There are different strains of neuropathy however diabetes and neuropathy usually affect the central extremities meaning the arms and legs; hands and feet.
Neuropathy Diabetic patients often complain of a numbing sensation in their hands and feet or arms and legs. These patients have trouble with balance, walking and sleeping. They are usually in constant pain and feel like their feet are on fire or someone is sticking pins and needles in their legs.
Controlling Diabetic Neuropathy
Some alternative therapies claim to not only control but even reverse the effects of diabetic neurpathy and nerve damage caused by diabetes. Implementation of a better and healthier lifestyle is one of the main ways to do this. Usually all physicians, doctors and experts will take a look at what your current eating and exercise habits are and advise certain modifications coherent with diabetic neuropathy to be applied. It seems like common sense but the fact is many of the above mentioned 60% of diabetic who suffer from peripheral diabetic neuropathy and nerve damage are unable to change their lifestyle. There seems to be some reason due to which they continue doing what they’ve always done. This could be it laziness, loss of drive or energy, unwillingness, depression, lack of support from friends and family, lack of will power or even lack of know-how.
In the words of W.L. Bateman: “If you keep on doing what you’ve always done, you’ll keep on getting what you’ve always got.”
Some ideas to instigate immediate changes in diet and fitness include: