Diabetes Fundamentals

Diabetes is a disease in which the body’s blood glucose levels are above normal. People with diabetes have problems converting food to energy. Normally, after a meal is eaten the food is broken down into a sugar called glucose. This glucose is then carried by the blood to cells throughout the body. At this point, the pancreas manufactures a hormone called insulin for the cells to help them convert blood glucose into energy.

Type 2 diabetes occurs because the cells in the muscles, liver, and fat do not use insulin properly. Over time the pancreas simply cannot make enough insulin for the body’s needs. This results in the amount of glucose in the blood increasing while the cells are starved of energy. Over time, high blood glucose damages nerves and blood vessels which can lead to complications including heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney disease, nerve problems, gum infections, and even amputation.

Seventeen million Americans have diabetes, and a third of the people with this disease don’t even know they have it. Many people have no symptoms at all, which can make detection even more difficult. Of the 9.1 million women in the U.S. who have diabetes, nearly a third don’t realize it.

Exactly what tests are conducted to screen for diabetes, and what blood sugar levels are considered normal?

• A fasting blood sugar test measures the amount of glucose in the blood after an eight hour fast. A normal level is 70 to 99 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL). Fasting blood sugar levels of 100 mg/dL to 125 mg/dL may indicate pre–diabetes which is also known as borderline or early diabetes. A fasting blood glucose of 126 mg/dL or higher on two occasions (in the absence of other illnesses or medications know to elevate blood glucose levels) is diagnostic of type 2 diabetes ̵ with or without classic symptoms (increased thirst or hunger, frequent urination, weight loss or blurred vision).
• A random blood sugar test measures the blood sugar without considering the last time a meal was eaten. A random sugar >200 mg/dL in the presence of classic symptoms is diagnostic of diabetes.
• A glucose tolerance test measures the body’s response to sugar. A drink containing high levels of sugar is consumed and then blood is drawn two hours later. A normal level is less than 140 mg/dL. If the two–hour glucose tolerance is 140 mg/dL to 199 mg/dL, it may indicate pre–diabetes. A blood sugar of 200 mg/dL or higher two hours after drinking the sugar solution indicates the likelihood of type 2 diabetes.

Losing as little as 10 pounds can reduce the risk of developing diabetes by 58%, so paying close attention to what we can control will do a lot to prevent the onset of this disease. Managing our weight, reducing cholesterol and blood pressure, following a healthy diet, and getting exercise are all good preventative measures.

• Researchers have found that people following a low–fat vegan diet, cutting out all meat and dairy, lowered their blood sugar more and lost more weight than people on an American Diabetes Association diet
• Children who get obesity–related diabetes face a much higher risk of kidney failure and death by middle age than people who develop diabetes as adults
• 11.4% of all non–Hispanic African–Americans aged 20 or over have diabetes
• African–Americans are 1.6 times as likely to develop diabetes as whites of similar age
• Hispanics are 1.5 times more likely to have diabetes than Caucasians of similar age, and Mexican–Americans are over twice as likely to develop diabetes as whites,/li>
• Diabetes increases the risk of cardiovascular disease which is more serious among women. Deaths from heart disease have increased 23% over the past 30 years in women with diabetes – compared to a 27% decrease in women who don’t have the disease.