Diabetes Management

Diabetes is a medical condition that will alter the amount of sugar in your blood. If you do not manage this illness, you might develop heart disease, experience a stroke, or suffer from other complications. Fortunately, at Angel Plan in Red Oak, TX, we can use medications, lifestyle changes, and other diabetes management techniques to help you control this illness and lower your risk of experiencing complications.

How Can Diabetes Be Managed?

Before we begin your diabetes management program, we will perform a physical evaluation and talk about the symptoms that you are experiencing. After we have assessed your health, we will create a personalized plan that will help you manage your diabetes and other illnesses. Although this plan will be based on your unique needs, we may instruct you to reduce your risk of experiencing a cardiovascular event by taking medications.

In addition to taking prescription medications, you might need to change your diet, lose weight, and adopt a regular exercise routine. To help you successfully implement these lifestyle changes, we will teach you how to adjust your diet and begin exercising. For example, we might advise you to adopt a Mediterranean diet that contains a large amount of plant-based foods.

What Different Types of Diabetes Exist?

You can develop type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, or gestational diabetes. Each of these illnesses will cause you to experience a unique set of symptoms and health issues.

Type 1 Diabetes

Researchers do fully understand the causes of type 1 diabetes. However, some scientists believe that type 1 diabetes develops when you have an autoimmune issue that changes your production of insulin. Your pancreas creates this powerful hormone. When this hormone enters your bloodstream, it will decrease the amount of sugar in your blood.

Sometimes, your immune system may attack the pancreatic cells that produce insulin. This process will dramatically decrease your insulin levels and cause your blood sugar to become higher. If you develop this type of diabetes, you may experience very rapid symptoms. It’s common to be diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when you are a child or teenager. If you have this illness, you will need to control your blood sugar by taking insulin.

Type 2 Diabetes

In contrast, type 2 diabetes occurs when you are unable to use insulin to control the amount of sugar in your blood. Over time, genetics and other factors may cause your cells to become less sensitive to insulin. As your sensitivity decreases, your pancreas may fail to produce a sufficient amount of insulin to control your blood sugar levels, and you may be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.

Since this illness may take several years to develop, it’s common to receive a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes when you are an adult. Under some circumstances, this illness may not cause negative symptoms, and you might not realize that you have this type of diabetes. If you have a high risk of experiencing this health problem, you should protect your health by receiving regular screenings.

Gestational Diabetes

Under some circumstances, you might be diagnosed with diabetes after you become pregnant. During your pregnancy, you will start to make hormones that will increase your resistance to insulin. Under normal circumstances, your pancreas will fix this issue by making extra insulin. If your pancreas is unable to make enough additional insulin, your blood sugar levels will increase, and you will develop gestational diabetes.

This health condition will increase your risk of experiencing complications during your pregnancy. After you give birth, this condition will usually resolve. However, you will have a higher chance of developing type 2 diabetes as you become older, and your child will have an elevated risk of experiencing diabetes and other problems during their lifetime.

What Are the Symptoms of Diabetes?

The symptoms that you experience will depend on the amount of sugar in your blood. When you initially develop 2 diabetes, you might not have any symptoms. As your diabetes becomes more severe, you might begin to experience physical problems. For example, diabetes can cause you to become thirsty and feel very hungry. In addition, you might need to regularly visit the bathroom to urinate.

Diabetes can also cause you to feel very tired. Over time, you may develop infections that affect your skin or gums. Further, you might lose weight without changing your diet and suffer from blurred vision. If you have any of these problems, you should schedule a visit so that we can use blood tests and other methods to analyze your health.

What Is Metabolic Syndrome?

Diabetes is associated with a condition called metabolic syndrome. If you have diabetes and high cholesterol, obesity, or hypertension, you will have this syndrome. This combination of illnesses will increase your chance of experiencing a stroke, heart attack, congestive heart failure, and other cardiac events. Fortunately, we can use a variety of diabetes management techniques to lower your risk of experiencing these problems.

If you believe that you might be suffering from diabetes or metabolic syndrome, you should schedule a consultation at our office in Red Oak. After we assess your diabetes and other illnesses, we can begin the process of managing these health conditions. Controlling these health problems will decrease your chance of experiencing a cardiac event and other significant complications.

What Risk Factors Will Increase My Chance of Developing Diabetes?

Your family history, lifestyle choices, and several other factors can raise your risk of suffering from diabetes.

Your Family History

If you have a sibling or parent who has type 1 or type 2 diabetes, you will be more likely to be diagnosed with this illness.

Your Age

As you become older, you will be increasingly likely to develop type 2 diabetes. Some scientists think that your risk will rise over time because your muscle mass will decrease. In addition, you will be more likely to gain weight, and you may exercise less frequently when you become older.

Your Weight

Gaining weight will enhance your chances of experiencing type 2 diabetes. As you become heavier, you will gain fatty tissue that will cause your cells to become more resistant to insulin.

Your Blood Pressure and Cholesterol Levels

Having high blood pressure and abnormal cholesterol levels is associated with a higher chance of experiencing diabetes. In particular, your risk will be elevated if your blood pressure is higher than 140/90 mm Hg. Similarly, having abnormally low levels of a good type of cholesterol called high-density lipoprotein will raise your risk of developing diabetes.

Your Lifestyle Decisions

Engaging in a regular exercise with Diabetes Management program will increase your cells’ sensitivity to insulin. In addition, exercise can be a good way to manage your weight. If you live a sedentary lifestyle, your weight may increase, and your cells may become less sensitive to insulin.

Will Developing Diabetes Increase My Risk of Experiencing Complications?

Diabetes is associated with heart problems, vision issues, and many other health conditions and complications.

Vision Issues

Over time, diabetes can cause the blood vessels in the back of your eyes to become damaged. This issue may cause permanent vision loss. In addition, diabetes will increase your chance of experiencing glaucoma, cataracts, and other types of vision issues.

Cardiovascular Problems

Having diabetes will raise your chance of experiencing many types of cardiovascular issues. In particular, you will be more likely to have heart attacks, coronary artery disease, strokes, and other problems. Your risk of developing these conditions will increase if you have been living with diabetes for a long time. Failing to control your blood sugar levels will also enhance these risks.

Foot Problems

Diabetes can cause you to experience blood flow issues and nerve problems that damage your feet. For example, you might notice blisters and cuts on your feet. If you do not treat these issues, you could have uncomfortable infections and other complications.

What Is Prediabetes?

About 88 million adults in the United States are suffering from a condition called prediabetes. This problem develops when a person has elevated blood sugar levels that are not severe enough to lead to a diabetes diagnosis. Since this problem may not cause any symptoms, over 84% of people with this condition are not aware that they have prediabetes.

Unfortunately, prediabetes will increase your risk of developing a stroke, heart disease, and other problems. Further, if you do not adopt healthy lifestyle changes, your prediabetes could turn into type 2 diabetes. If you are suffering from prediabetes, you should receive a treatment plan from our office. We can help you adopt diet changes, exercise routines, and other lifestyle changes that will help you control your blood sugar levels.

Will Eating a High Amount of Sugar Cause Me To Develop Diabetes?

Some people believe that consuming candies, sodas, and other substances with a high amount of sugar is the sole cause of diabetes. This myth is incorrect, and your genetics, exercise habits, and many other factors can cause you to develop diabetes.

That said, it’s important to understand that eating excessive amounts of calories can increase your weight and enhance your risk of experiencing this health problem. Further, scientific research has indicated that consuming drinks that contain a high amount of sugar may increase your chance of experiencing type 2 diabetes.

Will My Diabetes Management Treatments Be Affordable?

Many medical treatments are very expensive. If you cannot afford to pay for these costly treatments, you might struggle to manage your diabetes and other illnesses. Fortunately, we offer affordable diabetes management treatments at Angel Plan.

In particular, we offer membership plans that will provide you with quality healthcare at a very affordable cost. For example, you might decide to join our 12-month membership plan by paying $30 each month. Under this plan, you will pay $99 for basic laboratory work and $30 for each visit to our office.

Manage Your Diabetes

If you do not treat your diabetes, you will be more likely to experience cardiac events, vision loss, and other health problems as you continue to age. We can use medications, diet changes, exercise programs, and other diabetes management techniques to control this health problem. If you would like to learn more about how to use these methods to manage your diabetes, contact us today at Angel Plan in Red Oak, TX.