What is Diabetes | Symptoms, Causes, Treatment & More

Diabetes—it is a severe disease, which affects millions of people globally. But you won’t believe this, in the United States alone, 37.3 million people, or about 11% of the population are suffering from the condition. Globally, the situation is worse since over 537 million adults are currently affected.

This “silent killer” messes with the body’s ability to keep blood sugar in check, which, if ignored, can lead to some serious health problems. Constant thirst, always feeling tired, and dropping weight for no reason? Those are some telltale signs.

Keep reading to learn what diabetes is all about—from the different types to what causes it and, most importantly, how to manage it.

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes is a condition where the sugar (called glucose) in your blood gets too high. This happens when your pancreas doesn’t make enough insulin, or sometimes, none at all.

In other situations, the body’s cells stop responding properly to insulin. Insulin is a hormone that acts like a key, helping sugar get into your cells so they can use it for energy. Without enough insulin or the ability to use it properly, the sugar stays in your blood, causing high blood sugar levels.

People of all ages can develop diabetes. Once diagnosed, most forms of diabetes stay with a person for life. However, diabetes can be managed with medication, regular exercise, and diet changes, allowing many people to live healthy lives.

Glucose and Insulin

Glucose is what powers you up—it’s the energy source in most of the carbs you eat. After digestion, glucose enters the bloodstream. Insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas, acts as a key, unlocking cells to allow glucose to enter and provide energy. However, in diabetes, either the body doesn’t produce enough insulin or the cells resist its effects. This leads to elevated blood sugar levels, which, over time, can cause various health complications.

High blood sugar can damage your body over time. This can affect your eyes, kidneys, nerves, and heart.

What Are the Different Types of Diabetes?

Now, diabetes comes in different flavors:

Type 2 Diabetes

This is the big one—most people with diabetes have this type. It usually hits adults but is now cropping up more in younger folks. This highlights the increasing prevalence of Type 2 diabetes among younger individuals, often linked to lifestyle factors like poor diet and sedentary behavior.

Prediabetes

This is like a yellow light—a warning sign. Your blood sugar’s higher than it should be, but not quite at Type 2 levels. Without changes, though, it can turn into full-blown diabetes.

Type 1 Diabetes

Not as common, but about 5-10% of diabetes cases are Type 1. It’s an autoimmune thing—your immune system goes rogue and attacks the insulin-making cells in your pancreas. Usually starts young, but adults can get it too.

Gestational Diabetes:

Some women get this during pregnancy. It usually fades after the baby’s born, but it ups the risk of Type 2 later on.

And here are some less common types:

• Type 3c Diabetes: Comes from damage to the pancreas from things like pancreatitis or even cancer.
• Latent Autoimmune Diabetes in Adults (LADA): Similar to Type 1 but shows up later in life and takes its sweet time to develop.
• Maturity-Onset Diabetes of the Young (MODY): Rare and genetic, running in families. Messes with insulin production or use.
• Neonatal Diabetes: Super rare, affecting infants under six months.
• Brittle Diabetes: A hardcore form of Type 1 with wild blood sugar swings, often needing hospital care.

Keeping diabetes in check matters because left unchecked, it leads to major health problems. So, let’s move on and talk about its symptoms and what causes it

What are the Signs & Symptoms of Diabetes?

Common Signs of Diabetes

If you have diabetes, you might experience these common symptoms:

• Extreme Thirst: Either having strong thirst, even when one consumes large amounts of water.
• Frequent Peeing: The need to urinate at night more frequently than before.
• Unusual Tiredness: Suffering fatigue, even though he received adequate amounts of sleep.
• Blurry Vision: Not able to see things cleary.
• Unexpected Weight Loss: Losing weight without trying.
• Numbness or Tingling: Suffering from a burning sensation in your hands or feet.
• Slow-Healing Sores: Skin lesions that occur with slow healing.
• Frequent Infections: Having more illnesses, for example skin or urinary system infections.

Different signs for different types of diabetes

• Type 1 Diabetes: The symptoms of this disease may appear rapidly within weeks or months. You might also feel sick to your stomach and vomit, have severe stomach pains, and have a smell on your breath that is fruity, which is a sign of a dangerous condition known as diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA).
• Type 2 Diabetes: It may take years for symptoms to appear, and you may not even realize it. In some cases, a simple blood test may show that you have high blood sugar even if you don’t have any symptoms yet. Another clue may be changes in skin color – this is an opaque, darkening of the skin, mainly the neck and axillary regions referred to as acanthosis nigricans.
• Gestational Diabetes: In most cases, you will not have symptoms. Gestational diabetes screening occurs during pregnancy, ideally between the 24th and 28th week of pregnancy, by your healthcare provider.

If you experience any of these symptoms, you should visit your doctor to be tested for the disease. It can be controlled and treated if diagnosed early to avoid complications of the disease affecting the patient’s health.

What Causes Diabetes?

Diabetes occurs when sugar (glucose) remains in the blood for a long time. Why? It depends on the type of diabetes you have, but in any case, something is interfering with the way your body processes insulin.

Here’s a look at what causes diabetes:

• Insulin Resistance – This one’s the main reason people get Type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance means your muscle, fat, and liver cells don’t respond right to insulin, so glucose can’t move from the blood into the cells where it’s needed. Why’s this happening? Factors like weight, lack of exercise, certain genes, and some medications can throw things off. In fact, around 90% of people with Type 2 diabetes face insulin resistance issues.
• Immune System Confusion – Type 1 diabetes and LADA are all about your immune system going rogue. For some reason, it attacks and kills insulin-producing cells in your pancreas. This is why Type 1 is called an autoimmune disease—it’s like your body’s defense system gets confused and takes out the wrong target.
• Hormone Imbalance – During pregnancy, the placenta releases hormones that can interfere with insulin. If your pancreas can’t keep up by producing enough insulin, you end up with gestational diabetes. Conditions like Cushing syndrome also mess with hormone levels and raise the risk of Type 2 diabetes.
• Pancreas Problems – If your pancreas gets damaged from surgery, injury, or issues like pancreatitis, it can’t make insulin right. That’s when you get Type 3c diabetes. It’s rare but definitely a tough one to deal with.
• Genetics – Sometimes, it’s in the DNA. Genetic mutations can trigger unusual forms like MODY and neonatal diabetes. Certain genes can mess with how your body produces or uses insulin, so if diabetes runs in your family, it’s worth getting checked.

And yes, do not forget about some meds. Long-term use of drugs like HIV/AIDS meds or even steroids can mess up your body’s insulin game. You could end up more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes just by taking those meds. It’s another thing to keep in mind.

What are the Side Effects of Diabetes?

Diabetes can lead to both acute complications and chronic complications depending on how high your blood sugar is for a long time. Here’s the thing – when your blood sugar is out of control, it affects everything, your heart, your nerves, and can lead to some issues.

Acute Diabetes Side Effects

Certain complications occur rapidly and may be fatal. Here’s what can go wrong:

• Hyperosmolar Hyperglycemic State (HHS): This is often seen in Type 2 diabetes. It occurs when your blood sugar level rises above 600 mg/dL for some time. You’ll get super thirsty, your head will spin, and you can even faint. If you get this, you have to go to a doctor—immediately.
• Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA): This is common with Type 1 diabetes and occurs when your body cannot properly utilize insulin. Thus, it burns fats to produce energy and as a result leads to production of ketones. These make your blood acidic, and let me tell you, you do not want that. You’ll feel nauseous, breathe abnormally, and possibly faint. This is another emergency that you cannot afford to overlook.
• Low Blood Sugar (Hypoglycemia): This is a nightmare if you take insulin. If you get your blood sugar too low, you may see double, shake, feel lost, or even have a seizure. You have to either give it a shot of sugar or get to the doctor straight away.

Long-Term Diabetes Side Effects

High blood sugar levels over time can damage blood vessels and nerves throughout the body. This can lead to a variety of long-term health problems, including:

• Heart and Blood Vessel Problems: Diabetes increases the risk of heart attacks, strokes, and other heart-related issues.
• Nerve Damage (Neuropathy): Nerve damage can cause numbness, tingling, or pain, often in the feet and hands.
• Kidney Damage (Nephropathy): This can lead to kidney failure, requiring dialysis or a kidney transplant.
• Eye Damage (Retinopathy): High blood sugar can damage the tiny blood vessels in the retina, potentially leading to vision loss or blindness.
• Foot Problems: Poor blood flow and nerve damage can increase the risk of foot ulcers, infections, and even amputations.
• Skin Infections: People with diabetes are more prone to skin infections.
• Sexual Dysfunction: Nerve damage can affect sexual function in both men and women.
• Digestive Problems: Diabetes can slow down digestion, leading to issues like nausea and vomiting.
• Hearing Loss: High blood sugar levels can damage the nerves in the ear, leading to hearing loss.
• Oral Health Problems: Diabetes can increase the risk of gum disease, tooth decay, and other dental problems.

Living with diabetes also affects mental health. People with diabetes are more likely to experience depression compared to those without the condition. It’s important to manage both physical and mental health to live a healthy life with diabetes.

How Do Doctors Diagnose Diabetes?

It all comes down to a few blood tests that check your blood sugar levels. These tests give doctors a clear look at how your body handles glucose or sugar. Below are the main tests used to diagnose diabetes:

Fasting Blood Glucose Test:

Before this test, you’ll need to fast for at least 8 hours. Yes—no food or drinks, except for water. This test measures how much sugar is in your blood after you’ve gone without eating for a while. If your sugar levels are high, it might be a red flag for diabetes.

Random Blood Glucose Test:

This one’s super easy—get it done at any time of the day, regardless of when you last ate. Doctors usually go for this test if they suspect someone has high blood sugar symptoms, like always feeling thirsty or running to the bathroom a lot. It’s even handy in emergency situations.

A1C Test (Hemoglobin A1c):

The A1C test checks your average blood sugar over the last 2 to 3 months. It’s perfect for keeping tabs on your long-term blood sugar control. If the A1C number is high, it means your blood sugar’s been elevated for a while. If that’s the case, your doctor might want to keep a closer eye on things.

How to Read Your Results

The results of these tests help your doctor figure out if you have diabetes, prediabetes, or if everything’s normal. Here’s a general guide to what the numbers mean:

Test Type	Normal Range	Prediabetes Range	Diabetes Range
Fasting Blood Sugar Test	Less than 100 mg/dL	100-125 mg/dL	126 mg/dL or higher
Random Blood Sugar Test	N/A	N/A	200 mg/dL or higher (with symptoms)
A1C Test	Less than 5.7%	5.7%-6.4%	6.5% or higher

These guidelines can vary. However, your doctor will consider your symptoms and your medical history before coming to a final decision. If you think you might be at risk, for sure, talk to your doctor about it. It means that you can control things before they get out of hand or before they worsen.

Is it possible to prevent diabetes?

Many people want to know how to prevent diabetes, but the truth is there is no proven remedy or treatment to prevent this. Yes!

However, you can lower the chances of getting diabetes with the following ways:

• Take healthy foods, for instance, the Mediterranean diet.
• Stay active. Make sure that you engage in some form of exercise for not less than 30 minutes in a week, for at least five days.
• Achieve and maintain a healthy body weight.
• Manage your stress levels.
• Drink alcohol in moderation.
• Sleep well and try to get 7–9 hours of sleep each night and seek help for any sleep disorders if any.
• Stop smoking.
• Follow your doctor’s advice on the use of medicines to control any risk factors of heart disease.

Some factors, such as family history, age, and race, are inherent and cannot be changed. Type 2 diabetes is a complex health issue with various contributing elements.

Diabetes and Life Expectancy

The outlook for diabetes can vary widely and depends on several key factors, such as:

• Whether it is Type 1, Type 2, or gestational diabetes.
• How well you manage the condition in the long run and whether you have adequate health care services.
• The age at diagnosis and number of years since diagnosis of diabetes.
• Any other medical conditions that you might have.
• Whether you get some of the diabetes complications.

Uncontrolled high blood sugar levels have long-term effects which are severe and some of which are irreversible. Some studies have established that poorly managed blood sugar levels can lead to shortened life expectancy and a poor quality of life.

Diabetes is the 8th leading cause of death in the United States. Diabetes patients are likely to die from fatal heart attacks or strokes, which are some of the major causes of death among diabetic patients.

Last Words

Diabetes is a challenging diagnosis, but it doesn’t have to dictate your life; you can maintain a healthy lifestyle. Diabetes requires constant attention and an active approach, and it takes time for you to become aware of your body’s needs.

Ensure that you get a routine check-up with your healthcare providers. Diabetes is a shared responsibility, and it is easier when you have your doctor, family, and friends with you. Please do not feel shy about turning to them for help in situations where you find yourself needing it. Having a positive attitude and a good network of caregivers, it is possible to live a healthy life even with diabetes.