Diabetes: Are you at risk?
One in four Americans with diabetes has it, but they do not know it!
Health Plan of San Joaquin celebrates National Diabetes Month in November. Join us in learning more about some of the risk factors of diabetes, and the importance of talking to your doctor to get tested.
Diabetes is a disease that makes it difficult for the body to turn food into energy. Diabetes means too much sugar (glucose) in the blood.
Your chances of having type 2 diabetes depends on a combination of risk factors such as your genes and lifestyle. Even though you can’t change risk factors such as family history, age or ethnicity, you can change lifestyle risk factors that focus on eating, staying active and weight.
Here are some of the risk factors that give you a higher chance of having type 2 diabetes. You are more likely to have type 2 diabetes if you:
- Are overweight or obese
- Are age 45 or older
- Have a family history of diabetes
- Are African American, Alaska Native, American Indian, Asian American, Hispanic/Latino, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander
- Have high blood pressure
- Have a low level of HDL (“good”) cholesterol, or a high level of triglycerides
- Have a history of gestational diabetes or gave birth to a baby weighting 9 pounds or more
- Are not physically active
- Have a history of heart disease or stroke
- Have depression
- Have polycystic ovary syndrome, also called PCOS
- Have acanthosis nigricans – dark, thick, and velvety skin around your neck or armpits
One in four Americans with diabetes has it, but they do not know it! Take the American Diabetes Association (ADA) Diabetes Risk Test to see if you are at risk for type 2 diabetes:
http://www.diabetes.org/are-you-at-risk/diabetes-risk-test/
The consequences of uncontrolled Diabetes
You may have heard that phrase, “you don’t know what you don’t know.” Diabetes is one chronic disease where you really want to know if you have it.
Talking to you doctor and getting tested is important because you may find that you have prediabetes, which can be reversed with behavior changes. If you never know you have prediabetes and it develops into diabetes, there is a chance that it will become uncontrolled diabetes. Uncontrolled diabetes leads to a higher risk of serious complications. If not treated, diabetes complications may be disabling or even life-threatening.
What to expect during your visit to your doctor
Your doctor will perform a blood test, which looks at your hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c). The HbA1c blood test measures the percent of sugar attached to the hemoglobin protein within the past two to three months. The outcome will tell your doctor if you have a normal blood sugar (glucose) level, have pre-diabetes, or diabetes.
The Main Take-Away:
Not knowing your blood sugar levels can have many complications because you can quickly go from prediabetes to diabetes, and when you don’t know you have it you aren’t able to control it.
Possible complications are –
- Cardiovascular disease – Includes coronary artery disease and chest pain, heart attack, stroke and narrowing of arteries.
- Nerve damage – Too much sugar can hurt the walls of the tiny blood vessels affecting your limbs, including your legs, feet, arms and hands.
- Kidney damage – Diabetes can affect tiny blood vessel clusters that filter waste from your blood. Too much damage can lead to kidney failure or end-stage kidney disease, which may require dialysis or a kidney transplant.
- Eye damage – Too much sugar also can increase your risk of blindness, cataracts and glaucoma.
- Foot damage – Left untreated, cuts and blisters can develop infections that may lead to toe, foot or leg amputation.
For more about complications, please visit this website:
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/diabetes/basics/complications/CON-20033091.
Health Plan of San Joaquin knows all too well the complications that diabetes patients come across. For HPSJ members who have trouble controlling diabetes we offer a Disease Management Program.
“The patient with diabetes is the most important person on the diabetes care team. They need support from health care professionals, family, friends and community to manage their diabetes,” says HPSJ Nurse Care Manager, Consuelo Casillas, “Our Case/Disease Management nurses are well-informed about diabetes and are available to assist HPSJ members achieve a healthy life by living with diabetes,” she adds.
To learn more about diabetes, please visit: https://hpsj4.wpengine.com/diabetes-education.
© Health Plan of San Joaquin, October 2017