How do you know if you have diabetes?

Diabetes is one of the most common diseases that strike men and women, regardless of age or race.

It is one of the most dangerous diseases, especially when it is not diagnosed early and that is why it is important to be aware of the signs and symptoms of having diabetes.

How do you know if you have diabetes?

Are you worried that you might have diabetes? How can one tell? It is important to pay attention to symptoms and then consult with your personal doctor.

Most common signs and symptoms that may or may not indicate (pre)diabetes are listed below:

• Frequent Urination. Do you feel the urge to pee every few minutes or so? Frequent urination is a consequence of having too much sugar or glucose in your system
• The need to drink water more frequently. Because you are urinating more often, you may feel the need to drink more.
• Being hungry right away, even after eating a heavy meal. Because your blood sugar levels are too high, you may feel the need to eat more than usual. This is because your cells are not getting the right kind of energy that they need.
• Unusual weight gain or weight loss. Has your weight changed drastically recently? In combination with other symptoms, this might indicate (pre)diabetes. Check your weight from time to time and see if anything unusual is happening, especially if you know that you haven’t been doing anything deliberate that will allow you to lose or gain weight.
• Too much exhaustion. Do you easily feel tired after doing the usual things you do? If you sleep well and exhaustion still occurs, then something is wrong with your body. People with diabetes usually feel tired easily or feel like they want to stay in bed the whole day.
• Blurry vision. Your eyes / vision will suffer if you have diabetes.
• Itchy skin. A sudden feeling of irritation in the skin is often a sign that something is wrong.
• Swollen or bleeding gums. This is common to most women and is often regarded to as just the effect of brushing teeth too much.

Please note that if above symptoms appear there is no need for panic. Above mentioned symptoms might indicate other medical conditions which are not directly related to diabetes. Consult with your personal doctor!

If symptoms are present, now what?

You see, most of the symptoms of diabetes are things that pretty much happen to almost everyone from time to time. If symptoms keep appearing it is important to not ignore them. Ignoring the symptoms is not doing you a favour.

How do you know if you actually have diabetes? The answer is simply to be vigilant and aware of what’s going on in your body. Whenever in doubt you should talk to your personal doctor.

How to treat diabetes / is it curable?

Unfortunately, diabetes (type 1 and type 2) is irreversible. There is no known cure for diabetes type 1 & 2, however with proper measures the disease can be kept under control. Read more here.

Gestational diabetes develops during pregnancy and it is reversed after birth. Gestational diabetes might lead to diabetes (type 2) later in life, also, the disease can be transferred to fetus.

As further reading, we suggest you read this article on blood sugar levels.