DIABETES — WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
What is diabetes?
Diabetes is a condition which affects the way your body processes food causing abnormally high blood sugar.
What is prediabetes and diabetes?
Type 2 diabetes is a condition that means your body can’t use or produce enough hormone called insulin.
This causes your blood sugar to rise.
Prediabetes is when the blood sugar levels in your body are
high but not high enough to be diagnosed with diabetes.
Making changes at an early stage you may
be able to avoid becoming type 2 diabetic. Type 1 diabetes is different and usually starts in much
younger people. The body stops producing any insulin, and lifestyle changes can not prevent type 1
diabetes.
What are the symptoms of prediabetes?
In the early stages of prediabetes some people feel completely normal. However, you may have started to notice some symptoms of high blood sugar. These include increased thirst, blurred vision, increased tiredness and needing to urinate more at night.
What are the causes of diabetes?
Obesity and an inactive lifestyle are the commonest causes of type 2 diabetes. Your risk factor increases with age and if there is a family history of the disease. Type 1 diabetes and the exact cause is not known.
How can I avoid diabetes?
Research suggests losing 5-10% of your body weight can reduce your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Making some simple changes to your diet and activity level is all it takes.
We offer treatment
through the Boots online doctor service if you want to lose weight.
What changes can I make to my diet?
Our top recommendation to lose weight is to follow a healthy eating lifestyle. It’s important to reduce sugar, especially from sweets and biscuits. Also try to reduce your intake of saturated fats.
What are my chances of getting diabetes?
Go to the ‘Know Your Risk’ tool on the Diabetes UK website. Click https://riskscore.diabetes.org.uk/start
Page last reviewed by: Dr. Christina Hennessey 21/06/2021