Understanding Diabetic Basics

The best way to understand diabetes is to understand what happens to your blood sugar when you eat. Say you eat a banana; you already know your stomach breaks down the banana in your digestive system. The body breaks down food into usable components. One of those components is called glucose .Glucose is the fuel that all of the cells in your body need to function properly. Glucose is basically a sugar compound that needs the hormone insulin to help your cells maximize their glucose usage. Insulin is a hormone produced by your pancreas.

The pancreas makes a supply of insulin when your glucose level rises which is usually after you eat. In diabetes the pancreas does not make enough insulin to help your cells absorb all the needed glucose. You end up with an excessive amount of glucose in your blood. The result is hyperglycemia or high blood sugar.

The immediate effects are that you may feel dehydrated and drink more. You may also feel excessively Hungary as your body does not believe you have eaten enough food to fuel your cells. In type one diabetes unplanned weight loss is common. In type 2 diabetes many people are obese and do not experiences weight loss until their diabetes progresses. Type 1 diabetes is genetic and has a childhood onset.

In type one diabetes the pancreas produces no or very little insulin. In type 2 diabetes the pancreas produces some insulin and many times the symptoms are not very pronounced. It is estimated that one third of people with adult onset diabetes do not even know they have it. Diabetes can leads to serious kidney disease, because diabetics tend to produce "sweet urine" that is difficult time filtering out the excessive sugar in your urine. Medical tests that show this glucose spillage into your urine are one of the easiest ways to detect high blood sugar.

Another test that can indicate you are diabetic is one that measure the amount of ketones in your urine.Ketones are a substance your body releases when your body breaks down fat to use for energy. In diabetics a high ketone level can mean their blood sugar is out of control. Urine tests for blood sugar and ketones are not as accurate as blood tests. This is why many diabetics use home testing glucose monitors that measure the level of their blood sugar. Some diabetics may measure their ketone level as they may develop a life threatening condition know a diabetic ketoacidosis. New home blood sugar monitors also can check the ketone level in the blood .

If blood sugar levels are not kept under control it can lead to life threatening health conditions throughout the body. Circulation is effected when glucose heavy blood damages blood vessels. This increases a diabetics chance for heart disease and strokes related to high blood pressure. Other long term ailments related to uncontrolled diabetes is blindness, severe kidney disease, neuropathy, and wounds that will not heal properly leading to amputation.

Most adult diabetes is related to lifestyle. There is a genetic tendency in some ethnic groups to develop diabetes, but the odds for more and more Americans to get diabetes are related to obesity and a sedentary lifestyle. A genetic disposition to diabetes in adults can minimize by a well balanced diet, proper weight management, and exercise. These are not special actions that need to be taken by individuals, but rather components of an average healthy lifestyle.

http://diabetes.webmd.com/ketones-14241

http://www.bing.com/health/article/mayo-119085/Diabetes?q=diabetes