Diabetes Symptoms

Because of the somewhat insidious nature of diabetes to be present in an afflicted person without noticeable symptoms, being able to identify diabetes symptoms when they do occur is of utmost importance. Many of the symptoms are slight, at first, and build over time, combining with others to create impaired quality of life that can quickly crescendo to significantly disruptive health conditions, such as permanent nerve damage or vision loss.

Metabolic Syndrome, Or Syndrome X

Considering the seeming predisposition any industrialized nation’s people have towards diabetes, it is of no surprise that a large percentage of industrialized populations maintains blood serum markers that signal a pre-diabetes state. This stage of pre-diabetes, known as Metabolic Syndrome, is noted as the combination of obesity, raised cholesterol levels, predominantly high fasting blood sugar levels, low muscle mass, and chronic levels of inflammation. In individuals where the previous markers apply, and where the following diabetes symptoms are evident, a doctor visit is strongly recommended.

Unquenchable Thirst And Subsequent Urination

Diabetes causes a decline in the production of insulin by the pancreas, and causes produced insulin to have poor cellular binding capabilities. The resulting combination makes blood sugar uncontrollable, and the body responds by excreting it as quickly as possible in order to prevent cellular damage. The kidneys, then, struggle to keep up with the constant excretion of sugar, and require significantly higher amounts of water to handle the higher particulate content. This results in fluids being removed from tissues to handle the excretion process, and frequent voiding of the bladder occurs. Autonomous nervous system functions instruct the body to search out more fluids, and the process continues until blood insulin levels are brought into line with corresponding blood sugar amounts.

Fatigue As One Of Diabetes Symptoms

Similar to a low grade infection, the increased amounts of insulin that lead to diabetes are treated as an invader by the immune system. This, when combined with dehydration from excessive urination, and cellular damage from rampant blood sugar, can lead to feelings of fatigue. Fatigue should be noted as one of diabetes symptoms, most especially, when it occurs after a meal, or during times of the day that one shouldn’t feel tired.

Up And Down Weight Loss And Gain

If one’s diet has not changed to cause weight loss, yet it occurs anyway, it is important to consider this change as one of the many possible diabetes symptoms. This weight loss occurs as a result of the body’s inability to absorb sugar, a large source of dietary calories, into its cells via insulin mediation. Sugar is also being expelled from cells due to the cycle of dehydration and high water intake. Because of this process of high water intake, retention, and excretion, the rapid increase in weight, followed by rapid decrease, should be carefully watched for.

Vision Impairment

Many times the most shocking of all the early diabetes symptoms is the possible blurring of vision associated with the removal of fluid from cells. This fluid removal often occurs in the lenses, and can make vision blurry in infrequent intervals. Often blurriness comes with feelings of dehydration, and abates when adequate fluid is ingested. This is generally a temporary condition, but, when left unchecked, this can combine with retinal nerve damage and lead to partial, or even full, blindness.

More Infections That Are Harder To Overcome

An immune system that is bogged down attempting to fight off imagined invaders in the form of elevated insulin and blood sugar, does not have the ability to tackle the day to day bacterial, viral, and fungal invaders that attempt to take roost in the body. This makes infections more likely, and causes subsequent infections to take longer to heal.

Listen To Your Body

Fatigue can be natural, at times, and so can being thirsty, but combining the two, and ignoring them along with dropping significant weight over the course of a week, is not. Do not ignore the signs of diabetes in the hopes that they will go away on their own. Diabetes can be capably managed by doctors, health professionals, and a disciplined outlook, but will only worsen if left untreated.