New diagnosis of diabetes – clinical picture and symptomsYou have been diagnosed with diabetes: At first, this raises many questions. If you have been diagnosed with diabetes, you are probably confused at first about what to do now. However, diabetes is easily treatable, so that you can lead a largely symptom-free life with diabetes.
An important condition is that you accept the disease and treatment. Here on diabinfo.de – the diabetes information portal of Helmholtz Zentrum Munchen, the German Diabetes Center (DDZ) and the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD) – you can find comprehensive information about the disease. Only then can you decide for yourself which treatment measures you can and want to take on your own responsibility and with motivation. You can also find support from numerous information and counseling services, doctors and self-help groups.
Information in simple language on the topics "What is diabetes??" as well as "type 1 diabetes and "Type 2 diabetes are available on diabinfo.are also available.
.Diabetes Newly Diagnosed
What is diabetes?
Diabetes mellitus, popularly known as diabetes, is a chronic metabolic disease. The main characteristic is chronic hyperglycemia (high blood sugar), which means that the blood sugar level is permanently elevated. It is caused by impaired absorption of glucose (sugar) from the blood into the body's cells. Diabetes mellitus must be treated as early as possible, as the high blood glucose levels can cause damage to blood vessels, nerves and organs.
In order to utilize the sugar obtained from food in the body cells, the body needs the hormone insulin. In people with diabetes, the effect of insulin is reduced and/or the pancreas produces too little insulin or none at all. Based on this disorder, a basic distinction is made between type 1 and type 2 diabetes. However, there are also other types of diabetes that occur less frequently. Gestational diabetes is another form of diabetes. This is a metabolic disorder that is first diagnosed during pregnancy. As a rule, the blood glucose level returns to normal after pregnancy and the diabetes disappears. You can find more information about gestational diabetes here!
Type 1 diabetes
Type 1 diabetes usually occurs in childhood or adolescence, but adults can also develop type 1 diabetes. In this disease, the insulin-producing beta cells of the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas are irreparably damaged. The body can no longer produce insulin. Therefore, they also cannot absorb the sugar from the blood into the body's cells. The result is an elevated blood glucose level.
In the majority of patients, the islet cells are destroyed by the body's own antibodies due to a faulty reaction of the immune system. It is therefore an autoimmune disease. People suffering from type 1 diabetes must regularly measure their blood sugar levels and inject insulin.
Type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes usually does not occur until after the age of 40. The onset of diabetes occurs at the age of 60 and was therefore often referred to in the past as adult-onset diabetes. In this disease, the response of the body's cells to the hormone insulin decreases (insulin resistance). As a result, the pancreas initially increases insulin production until the increased insulin secretion is no longer sufficient to compensate for the insulin resistance. In the long term, the insulin-producing beta cells of the pancreas secrete less and less insulin.
The development of this disease is insidious, it is usually diagnosed only by chance. Risk factors for type 2 diabetes are obesity, too little exercise and unhealthy diet. Patients suffering from the so-called metabolic syndrome have a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes. In metabolic syndrome, several clinical pictures occur simultaneously: Overweight (especially due to abdominal fat), high blood glucose and blood lipid levels, and high blood prere.
In the early stages of type 2 diabetes, weight loss through dietary changes and increased exercise can often be sufficient to improve blood glucose levels.
What symptoms can indicate diabetes?
The main characteristic of diabetes mellitus is a permanently elevated blood glucose level. This so-called hyperglycemia can cause the following typical symptoms:
– Strong feeling of thirst – Increased urge to urinate – Weight loss – Muscle weakness – Fatigue – Poor wound healing – Visual disturbances – Dry, itchy skin
In patients with type 1 diabetes, symptoms usually appear within days or weeks. The disease usually breaks out in childhood or adolescence, but can also recur in adults. Type 1 diabetes must be treated for the rest of the patient's life by injecting insulin.
The highly elevated blood glucose levels can lead to a dangerous metabolic derailment known as diabetic ketoacidosis. Diabetic ketoacidosis is an acute emergency. Must be treated as soon as possible in the hospital. Ketoacidosis mainly affects people with type 1 diabetes, as it develops as a result of absolute or relative insulin deficiency. However, diabetic ketoacidosis can also occur in people with type 2 diabetes if insulin is hardly available or effective in the case of severely elevated blood glucose levels.
However, because the pancreas usually secretes at least small amounts of insulin in people with type 2 diabetes, they are more likely to develop what is known as hyperglycemic hyperosmolar syndrome when blood glucose levels are very high for a long period of time. For more information about this metabolic derangement, click here.
Type 2 diabetes tends to affect older people. The disease usually develops gradually. Its signs are often nonspecific. Therefore, in many cases type 2 diabetes remains undetected for years. Often, the abnormally high blood glucose level is an incidental finding when affected individuals are examined due to another illness. To detect the disease early and prevent possible sequelae, regular health checks with a physician are essential.