Security Health Plan Cares (Summer 2007)
Could you or someone you love have diabetes?
People often don't know they have diabetes, because many of the symptoms seem harmless. Symptoms of type 1 diabetes include:
- Increased thirst
- Increased urination
- Weight loss in spite of increased appetite
- Fatigue
- Nausea
- Vomiting
Symptoms of type 2 diabetes include:
- Increased thirst
- Increased urination
- Increased appetite
- Fatigue
- Blurred vision
- Slow-healing infections
- Impotence in men
Diabetes is a disease in which blood glucose levels are above normal. People with diabetes have problems changing food to energy. Cells in the body use insulin, a hormone made in the pancreas, to help convert blood glucose to energy. Pre-diabetes occurs when blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough for the diagnosis of diabetes.
People can develop diabetes because:
- The pancreas does not make enough insulin
- The cells in the muscles, liver and fat do not use insulin properly
- Or both
The American Diabetes Association recommends screening for pre-diabetes and diabetes in all people 45 years of age and older. Repeat screening every three years is recommended.
The screening test for diabetes is a fasting plasma (blood) glucose test. A blood sample is drawn after at least 8 hours without eating.
Screening should be done in people younger than age 45 if they have risk factors. Risk factors include:
- Overweight or obese
- Exercise fewer than three times per week
- Have a parent, brother or sister with diabetes
- Blood pressure is 140/90 mmHg or higher
- HDL cholesterol (good cholesterol) less than 35 mg/dL
- Triglyceride level is 250 mg/dL or higher
- Have had gestational diabetes or gave birth to a baby weighing more than nine pounds
- Family background is African American, American Indian, Asian American, Pacific Islander or Hispanic American/Latino
A plasma glucose test result of 99 mg/dL or below is considered normal. If the plasma glucose test result is 100 to 125 mg/dL, it is considered pre-diabetes. When the result of the plasma glucose test is 126 mg/dL or above, a diagnosis of diabetes is suspected. The test should be repeated on a different day for a diagnosis of diabetes.
The good news is lifestyle changes can decrease the chance of diabetes or pre-diabetes. Weight loss of 5 to 10 percent can delay or prevent diabetes. Thirty minutes of physical activity per day can also delay or prevent diabetes.
