DIABETES, TYPE 2

DIABETES, TYPE 2

Type 2 diabetes is a long-term condition that affects the manner in which your body uses sugar to provide fuel for your body.

With type 2 diabetes, your body either opposes the effects of insulin — a hormone that controls the movement of sugar into your cells — or doesn’t create enough insulin to keep up with normal glucose levels.

Type 2 diabetes used to be called adult-onset diabetes, however, today, more kids are being diagnosed to have the condition, presumably because of the rise in childhood obesity.

There’s no treatment for type 2 diabetes, yet getting more fit, eating healthy and exercising can help deal with the illness. If diet and exercise aren’t sufficient to deal with your glucose levels, you may likewise require diabetes drugs or insulin treatment.

Symptoms

Signs and symptoms of type 2 diabetes frequently grow gradually. You can have type 2 diabetes for a long time and not know it. Look for the following symptoms:

 

  • Expanded thirst
  • Frequent urination
  • Increased hunger
  • Unintended weight reduction
  • Exhaustion
  • Blurred vision
  • Slow healing of wounds
  • Frequent infections
  • Zones of skin turn black

Diagnosis

Type 2 diabetes is usually diagnosed by the following:

  • Glycated hemoglobin (A1C) test. This blood test shows your normal glucose level for a few months.
  • Random blood sugar test. Blood sugar values are expressed in milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or millimoles per liter (mmol/L).
  • Fasting blood sugar test. A blood sample is taken after an overnight fast.
  • Oral glucose tolerance test. This test is less commonly used than the others, except during pregnancy.

In case you’re diagnosed to have diabetes, the doctor may do different tests to know whether there is type 1 or type 2 diabetes, since the two conditions frequently require distinctive medicines.

Treatment

Treatment of Type 2 diabetes includes:

  • Diabetes medication or insulin therapy
  • Weight loss
  • Healthy eating
  • Less calories
  • Less refined sugars, particularly desserts
  • Less foods containing saturated fats
  • More vegetables and fruits
  • More fiber
  • Go for at least 30 to 60 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise most days of the week. Keep in mind that physical activity brings down glucose. Check your glucose levels before any movement.

Medications for type 2 diabetes include:

  • Metformin
  • Sulfonylureas
  • Meglitinides
  • Thiazolidinediones
  • DPP-4 inhibitors
  • GLP-1 receptor drugs
  • SGLT2 inhibitors
  • Insulin

Aside from diabetes medicines, your doctor may recommend low-dose aspirin treatment along with blood pressure and cholesterol-lowering drugs down to help avoid heart and blood vessel disease.

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