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Diabetes
Diabetes can be a lifelong condition, which affects a person’s blood glucose levels, causing them to be too high. There are two types of diabetes; type-1 and type-2. Type-1 diabetes is genetic, with some people having this type from birth. Type-2 diabetes is brought on by lifestyle, such as diet or lack of exercise. Diabetes is not a death sentence and can be controlled through medication combined with making positive lifestyle changes.
Additional Information
What is Diabetes and how is it caused?
Diabetes is a health condition caused by too much blood sugar (glucose). This is something contained in the foods we consume and our primary energy source.
The pancreas produces ‘insulin’; a hormone that aids the glucose taken from food to enter our bodily cells and then is utilised for energy. However, if you have diabetes, your body cannot break down glucose into energy.
Although it is not currently known the exact cause(s) of type-1 diabetes, type-2 is linked to lifestyle and ethnicity may also play a part in the development of type-2 diabetes.
Type-1 v Type-2 Diabetes
With type-1 diabetes, your body attacks cells in your pancreas, preventing the pancreas from then producing any insulin.
However, with type-2 diabetes, your body cannot make enough insulin, or the insulin that is produced, cannot be used correctly by the body.
Type-2 diabetes is far more common that type-1, affecting around 90% of those with diabetes. Although many people are confused between the two, both types of diabetes are serious and if not managed properly, can lead to numerous health complications, so it is important to correctly manage your diabetes.
Many people unknowingly have type-2 diabetes because symptoms do not necessarily make you feel unwell and may seem manageable.
Diabetes symptoms of type-2 include: urinating more often (particularly at night), feeling thirsty often, losing weight without trying, feeling tired and cuts or wounds that take longer to heal.
Treatment for Diabetes
Although we do not currently supply treatment for type-1 diabetes, those with this type of diabetes will have to inject insulin to control their blood glucose levels, due to the pancreas no longer producing insulin. There are different kinds of insulin, which are taken at different times.
For those with type-2 diabetes, often prescription diabetes medication such as Metformin tablets are prescribed and taken in conjunction with making conscious efforts to improve lifestyle choices, such as reducing alcohol intake, quitting smoking, exercising regularly and eating healthy food.
Metformin aids in the reduction of blood glucose levels by limiting the amount of glucose both produced and released by the liver, and by increasing insulin sensitivity. Some side effects of metformin include flatulence, heartburn, bloating, but these may have been discussed with your own doctor already.
It is vital to take diabetes seriously and make efforts to manage the condition properly. High blood glucose levels can lead to problems such erectile dysfunction, heart disease, kidney disease, nerve damage, stroke, blindness and even amputation.
If you have already been diagnosed with diabetes and prescribed Metformin, Medical Specialists® may be able to prescribe this medication for you. This is particularly handy if you are struggling to get in at the doctors for an appointment or need an emergency supply of your usual medication.