Diabetes mellitus is a dangerous disease, very common among our contemporaries, but not fatal, if you know how to properly “get along” with such a disease. Why is diabetes mellitus dangerous for the female half of humanity? Why does such a diagnosis sometimes come true?
First of all, diabetes is dangerous because it destroys the correct metabolism and glucose levels in the body, and also affects the heart capillaries, which, subsequently, cease to properly “supply” blood flow.
Diabetes causes
The most common causes of the onset of this disease in women are excess body weight, unhealthy diet, consuming large amounts of sweets, alcohol and smoking. Diabetes mellitus is, first of all, a disease associated with the endocrine system of the body, which causes an increase in blood glucose levels and a lack of insulin. Diabetes mellitus disrupts the metabolism of fats, proteins and carbohydrates.
This disease arises from a lack of insulin – a hormone that is found in the endocrine system in the pancreas. It helps with the metabolism of the body, saturating it with proteins and fats.
Insulin raises sugar levels in the cells of the human body by increasing the supply of sugar in the liver through a carbohydrate synthesis called glycogen, slowing down the breakdown of carbohydrates. Affects proteins during metabolism, this is due to an increase in nucleic acid and a decrease in protein breakdown. Insulin raises the sugar level in adipose tissue and activates the process of obtaining energy by cells and prevents the breakdown of fats.
But a lack of insulin in the body is formed when there is a shortage of the autoimmune process of the pancreas, which leads to the breakdown of cells in the endocrine system. This is how the first stage of diabetes mellitus appears, and if there are only 20% of working cells, then the first symptoms appear. ( Read more about the causes of diabetes here. )
Symptoms and manifestations of type 1 diabetes mellitus
There is a complex presence of symptoms of diabetes mellitus, characteristic of type 1: they express hyperglycemia (abnormal increase in blood glucose levels) and glycosuria (the presence of sugar in the urine), as a consequence of a lack of insulin in the body.
- frequent urge to use the toilet;
- feeling thirsty;
- feeling of dry mouth;
- despite an increase in appetite, body weight decreases;
- fungal infections on the skin and mucous membranes may appear, causing itching.
This type of disease is also called insulin-dependent or juvenile. Most often, young women under 30 years old suffer from it. And the reason is the destruction of the beta cells of the pancreas and a lack of insulin. It often happens that type 1 diabetes is inherited. It cannot be cured, but you can live with it by taking insulin injections for life. With proper treatment and monitoring of sugar levels, women with diabetes are allowed to have children.
Signs of type 2 diabetes
This type includes the course of the disease, which develops imperceptibly over several years and is usually observed in older women. It is expressed in:
- constant fatigue;
- decreased vision;
- memory impairment;
- manifestation of thirst;
- frequent urination.
With type 2 diabetes mellitus, thrush appears in women, which is almost not cured. For some people at this stage, the symptoms are still less noticeable, so there is a risk of heart attack or stroke. Diabetes diagnosis at this stage is usually accidental. In addition to these two types, there is diabetes No. 3,4,5 and also diabetes called gestational, but this classification is extremely rare.
If you notice fatigue or other similar symptoms, check your blood sugar, and if it is high, do not hesitate with treatment. Refusal of treatment in due time will lead to serious complications such as kidney failure, loss of limbs due to gangrene and blindness.
Manifestation of diabetes in pregnant women
Usually a pregnant woman does not know about the presence of an ailment, because it can manifest itself imperceptibly under the influence of hormones in the body, which “rage” during pregnancy. Pregnancy leads to weight gain, and therefore a pregnant woman must carefully monitor blood sugar levels to prevent a “jump” in sugar, which is very harmful to the fetus. If the tests are not reassuring, additional tests are taken on an empty stomach.
In some cases, symptoms may manifest as constant thirst, hunger, and decreased vision. Since pregnant women sometimes have a feeling of great hunger and thirst, this can hardly be a symptom of the disease. Constant donation of blood and tests, as well as consultation with a doctor, will help prevent this disease from taking a serious look.
Significant increases in blood sugar in a pregnant woman can pose a threat to both the baby and the pregnant woman, increasing the risk of miscarriage or complications during childbirth, and an urgent caesarean section is often prescribed. A child with a woman with diabetes mellitus is usually born with a heavy weight, and this is a serious threat to receive a birth injury associated with the cervical vertebrae.
With diabetes, it is also possible for a child to have a heart defect, because of this, some children may not survive. This can be avoided if the disease is identified and treated in time, as well as careful monitoring of blood glucose levels at all stages of pregnancy – a glucometer always at hand will help to cope with this: a device for measuring sugar levels.
Diabetes mellitus consequences
Diabetic retinopathy can be a consequence of diabetes mellitus – it is almost complete blindness as a result of hemorrhage of the eye vessels. This phenomenon usually spreads to people with type 2 diabetes. Within 8 years after the onset of the disease, this phenomenon is observed in 50% of patients. Nephropathy also develops and kidney failure occurs: either a transplant or dialysis is needed here.
In case of malnutrition of the vessels of the heart, their fragility occurs and atherosclerosis occurs. Most often, limb damage occurs, body temperature is disturbed, and blood circulation slows down. Joint pains appear, limbs begin to crunch, mobility is impaired. With diabetes, mental disorders can occur due to an organic lesion in the brain called encephalopathy. This is expressed in a change in mood and the emergence of emotional activity.
To avoid such a disease altogether, women need to follow a diet and make up the correct diet: take food 5 times a day, delete flour products from the diet and reduce sugar consumption, exclude honey and jam.
You should pay attention to various kinds of cereals, vegetables, boiled fish and herbal broth, play sports, do not sit in one place, consult a doctor on time, take blood tests. If the disease already exists, the same principles of life continue to operate further, perhaps according to a slightly stricter schedule.