The statistics of diagnosing such a chronic disease as diabetes indicate that women suffer from this disease much more often. This is largely due to the characteristics of the body: the work of the endocrine system, the instability of the hormonal background, the constitution of the body, a tendency to excess fat mass, less emotional and mental stability and low resistance to stress.
Therefore, it is very important to find out why diabetes in women is dangerous, how to avoid it, what are the possible consequences of the disease, and how to cope with this ailment. After all, a non-tolerant attitude towards your diagnosis, combined with proper treatment, will help prolong life and avoid possible complications.
Why is diabetes in women dangerous?
Diabetes has no age. Sometimes even a girl may face a diagnosis such as prediabetes.
This means that your blood sugar levels are above normal.
The main symptoms are nausea, unconditional vomiting, possible fever, and signs of neurological disease. Blood sugar levels in prediabetes are out of range. In this case, doctors already classify the person as a risk group for developing type 2 diabetes.
However, if you follow the recommendations of a specialist, you can stop the onset of this chronic disease without taking medication. At first, weight loss, adherence to a low-carbohydrate diet, and feasible physical activity will become effective means . However, you need to remember that being at risk you need to control yourself throughout your life.
Type 1 diabetes is more common in young women (also called “juvenile”). Type 1 diabetics account for 10-15 percent of the total number of patients.
Basically, it appears for two reasons: due to the destruction of cells in the pancreas or when the body does not produce enough insulin.
The symptoms of the disease are very specific, so most women consult a doctor in a timely manner. At the initial stage, such pronounced symptoms are characteristic as constant thirst, an almost never-ending feeling of hunger, and frequent urge to urinate.
Often, patients lose weight, as glucose synthesis occurs in an insufficient volume. As a result of the rapid burning of fat, a large amount of acetone is noticed in the urine.
Being overweight is a major contributor to type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes occurs in women over the age of 40. The developmental process begins with a decrease in tissue sensitivity to insulin. The onset of the disease is difficult to notice, since its development is slow, and the onset of symptoms is gradual.
Diabetes mellitus is directly related to obesity, which, due to a decrease in metabolism and changes in hormonal levels, affects almost 90 percent of women of this age. Therefore, it is no coincidence that doctors advise regularly checking blood sugar levels in order to identify the disease in time.
Other signs of endocrine disease can include:
- itching in the mucous membranes;
- decreased skin sensitivity, susceptibility to dermatological infections;
- drowsiness after eating;
- decreased immunity;
- slow wound healing.
In the initial stages of the disease, insulin is not prescribed for type 2 diabetes.
You need to try to achieve the effect through diet, exercise and the use of medications that help establish glucose tolerance. Unlike type 1 and type 2 diabetes, which affects both sexes, gestational diabetes only occurs in pregnant women.
This is an increase in blood sugar levels, which may not show other symptoms of the disease. Many experts believe that the allegedly spontaneous occurrence of the gestational type is not accidental.
They view this type of diabetes as common prediabetes, which will develop into type 2 diabetes in the future. Thus, even after the symptoms disappear and the sugar normalizes, the mother is at risk.
Sometimes hormonal changes during pregnancy can lead to the primary onset of true diabetes mellitus. If, within six months after childbirth, persistent preservation of elevated sugar levels is noticed, then it is necessary to go to the doctor for special tests.
The dependence of the appearance of this type of diabetes on the age and weight of the mother was directly noted. With normal body weight and up to 25 years, gestational diabetes is practically not diagnosed.
Diabetes effects specific to women only
Since a woman’s body differs from a man’s, along with the general symptoms typical for both sexes, it is possible to distinguish specific features of the course of the disease in women. They have diabetes easier and progress at a slower pace, but they also suffer from it much more often than men.
The consequences typical for an exclusively female body include:
- failure of the menstrual cycle;
- genital candidiasis, in connection with this itching and burning;
- decreased sex drive;
- pain in the legs with increased stress;
- swelling;
- blood pressure surges;
- complications during pregnancy;
- infertility;
- obesity;
- the appearance of hair in atypical places, as well as excessive hair loss and fragility.
Against the background of the consequences of diabetes, women often experience depressive conditions, based mainly on a feeling of dissatisfaction with their appearance. Therefore, it is necessary to take mild antidepressants and sedatives.
Possible complications during pregnancy and childbirth
Pregnant women who have been diagnosed with diabetes mellitus even before conception are put under special control. Even at the planning stage, specialists based on the data make forecasts of the risks of complications for the mother and the fetus.
This is due to the fact that, against the background of a hormonal surge, diabetes progresses at an accelerated pace, which significantly affects the state of health.
Other negative consequences of diabetes in women include:
- miscarriage;
- periodic sharp drops in sugar;
- preeclampsia at all stages of pregnancy;
- infectious processes in the genital tract;
- large weight gain;
- polyhydramnios, which threatens the risk of termination of pregnancy, the appearance of bleeding, the wrong position of the fetus;
- increased blood pressure;
- convulsions accompanied by loss of consciousness.
Often, increased fetal weight leads to difficult childbirth and severe trauma to the mother.
However, despite the fact that pregnancy is much more difficult for diabetic women, this does not reduce the likelihood that a healthy baby will be born.
Can there be diabetes mellitus with menopause?
Not all women develop diabetes during menopause, although many factors contribute to its onset.
Type 2 diabetes is most often diagnosed due to the cessation of the production of hormones important for the woman’s body.
The increase in adipose tissue trying to make estrogen leads to high blood sugar and cholesterol levels. The combination of menopause with diabetes comes with a mutual aggravation of symptoms.
Therefore, the well-being of a woman, both physical and mental, leaves much to be desired. Therapeutic therapy should be aimed not only at increasing glucose tolerance, but also at relieving the symptoms of menopause.
What diabetic complications can be fatal?
Diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer top the list in terms of deaths. The danger of diabetes is that with its progression, more and more complications appear.
The main reason for many cases of death is connivance towards the disease. Some patients bring themselves to the stage where sugar levels are no longer amenable to adjustment.
Any appearance of an acute form of complications can lead to death. These include:
- a sharp decrease in blood sugar levels with the possible development of hypoglycemic shock and falling into a coma;
- a sharp increase in glucose in the body, affecting many organs and affecting entire systems;
- poisoning of tissues with toxic ketone bodies;
- heart attack and stroke.
These are extreme cases of the manifestation of the disease. And the patient is able to independently prevent their occurrence by adhering to the recommendations throughout the entire period of the illness and by monitoring the blood sugar level on a daily basis.