Health Information for Senior Citizens

 

 

Overview

Diabetes means that your blood glucose (often called blood sugar) is too high. Your blood always has some glucose in it because your body needs glucose for energy to keep you going. But too much glucose in the blood isn't good for your health.

There are three types of diabetes: Type 1, Type 2, and gestational diabetes.

• Type 1 diabetes, formerly called juvenile diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes, is usually first diagnosed in children, teenagers, or young adults
• People can develop type 2 diabetes at any age—even during childhood. This form of diabetes usually begins with insulin resistance, a condition in which fat, muscle, and liver cells do not use insulin properly.
• Some women develop gestational diabetes during the late stages of pregnancy. Although this form of diabetes usually goes away after the baby is born, a woman who has had it is more likely to develop type 2 diabetes later in life.

The rest of the information found below will focus on Type 2 diabetes.

- Information obtained from the National Diabetes Education Program .

Take the Diabetes Tutorial.

 

Prevention

Some ways to help prevent or delay the onset of diabetes is to eat right and exercise.

 

Symptoms

Some people so no or very little signs of diabetes. In some cases the signs may be so mild that one does not even notice them. Some of the symptoms of diabetes include: increased thirst, increased hunger, fatigue, increased urination, weight loss, blurred vision, and sore throats.

 

 

Management/Treatment Options

Your doctor will decide the best treatment options for you. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention suggests your doctor will do some of the following exams and tests during visits:

• Measure your blood pressure at every visit
• Check your feet for sores at every visit, and give a thorough foot exam at least once a year
• Give you a hemoglobin A1C test at least twice a year, to determine what your average blood glucose level was for the past 2 to 3 months
• Test your urine and blood to check your kidney function at least once a year
• Test your blood lipids (fats) – total cholesterol; LDL, or low-density lipoprotein (“bad” cholesterol); HDL, or high-density lipoprotein (“good” cholesterol); and triglycerides at least once a year

You should also get a dental checkup twice a year, a dilated eye exam once a year, an annual flu shot, and a pneumonia shot.

Quick Facts

Here are some quick facts about Diabetes:

• As of 2002, 18.2 million people—6.3 percent of the population—had diabetes.
• The prevalence of diabetes increases among older people. Among Americans aged 60 years and older, 18.3 percent (8.6 million people) have diabetes.
• The Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) was a federally funded study of over 3,000 people at high risk for diabetes. The DPP showed that a 5 to 7 percent weight loss from exercise and decreased dietary fat and calories can delay and possibly prevent type 2 diabetes.
• The estimated economic cost of diabetes in 2002 was $132 billion. Of this amount, $92 billion was due to direct medical costs and $40 billion due to indirect costs such as lost workdays, restricted activity, and disability due to diabetes.

Links To Diabetes Information

American Diabetes Association

American Association of Diabetes Education

National Diabetes Education Center