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Beyond Sugar | Everything you need to know
Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs when the pancreas cannot produce insulin, or when the body cannot use the insulin that is produced.
Just as we store food, the body stores glucose in muscles, fat and the liver. When the body is unable to use/produce insulin, our body’s blood sugar levels become raised, and we run the risk of developing Hyperglycaemia. Hyperglycaemia can damage the vessels that supply blood to vital organs, which increases the risk of heart disease, stroke and kidney disease.
Diabetes affects more than 463 million people worldwide and is increasing, along with obesity. 40% of patients with heart failure also suffer from renal diseases.
Numbers Of The World
463 Million people live with DIABETES in the world
200 Million people with CHRONIC KIDNEY diseases in the world
17,7 Million deaths CARDIOVASCULAR diseases every year
40% of people with HEART FAILURE have RENAL DISEASES
Sources:
- https://www.idf.org/aboutdiabetes/what-is-diabetes/facts-figures.html. Revision 28, May 2020
- World Health Organization. WHO World Heart Day 2017: Scale up prevention of heart attack and stroke: World Health Organization; 2017 [cited 2018 Jul 25]. 1.Available at: http://www.who.int/cardiovascular_diseases/world-heart-day-2017/en/. Eye A. Addressing the global burden of chronic kidney disease through clinical and translational research. Trans Am Clin Climatol Assoc 2014; 125:229-43; discussion 243-6. 2. International Diabetes Foundation. Diabetes Atlas Eighth Edition 2017 (p43). Available at https://www.idf.org/e-library/epidemiology-research/diabetes-atlas.html
Education
Diabetes is the body’s inability to use and/or produce insulin. Should this happen over a long period of time, our bodies will become hyperglycaemic, and run the risk of developing chronic heart and kidney failure, as well as other interconnected renal and metabolic diseases. There are two main types of diabetes that our bodies can suffer from – Type 1 and Type 2.
Read more, and educate yourself on the risks of diabetes and how to live a long and healthy life.
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Useful tips
Upon receiving a diabetes diagnosis, there are several options available to help control the disease. Start by following a healthy food plan and getting some form of physical activity –start off slowly, but aim for at least 150 minutes per week.
Lifestyle changes can have an enormous impact on treating and managing diabetes, and often, a conscientious approach to a healthy lifestyle can allow people suffering from diabetes to prevent any further complications from arising.
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Symptoms
Manifestations of Type 2 diabetes may not be obvious, or there may be no signs at all, so it can take up to 10 years before you find out about them. That is why it is very important to know the risk factors.
You have an increased risk of Type 2 diabetes if you are overweight or obese, if you have a sibling or parent with diabetes, or if you are over 40 years of age. You have more risk if you are sedentary and lack physical activity.
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