How Does Diabetes Increase Your Risk Profile for Health Complications

Type 2 diabetes may be asymptomatic early on, and you may feel like there are no problems, but uncontrolled blood sugar can affect your health in dangerous ways. The blood vessels, heart, eyes, nerves and kidneys can all be damaged by diabetes that is uncontrolled, and even though the problems may take a while to develop, they are potentially disabling and life threatening. Keeping your blood sugar under control is the most effective way to manage complications. Doctors at Las Vegas medical clinics can give you advice on a workable “diabetes management” program.

Blood Vessel Disease and Heart Disease

Having diabetes creates a major increase in your risk profile for cardiovascular problems. You are more vulnerable to strokes, heart attacks, coronary artery disease with angina, atherosclerosis and high blood pressure if you are diabetic. Your stroke risk and mortality risk from heart disease are elevated by two to four times with diabetes.

Neuropathy

Too much sugar damages the walls of your capillaries, especially in the legs. The early warning signs of neuropathy may start off as tinging or numbness, but if your blood sugar is not controlled, it can progress to complete loss of feeling in the limbs. Erectile dysfunction is another common result of neuropathy in diabetics.

Nephropathy

The kidneys have millions of clusters of blood vessels to clean waste out of the blood. If the damage is severe, you could develop irreversible end-stage kidney disease or heart failure, which would require a kidney transplant or dialysis.

Foot Damage

Damage to the nerves and bad blood circulation puts the feet at risk of complications, even from minor injuries and trauma. If the damage is very severe, toe, foot or leg amputation may be necessary.

Mouth and Skin

Diabetics are also more susceptible to skin problems, especially bacterial and fungal infections. You may also experience gum infections or gum disease.

Alzheimer’s Disease

Having diabetes may also increase your risk for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Poorly controlled blood sugar is associated with an elevated risk of dementia. One explanation that has been offered is that diabetes-induced cardiovascular problems can lead to dementia by blocking the flow of blood to the brain, or by resulting in strokes. Other explanations include excess insulin, causing inflammation that can damage the brain or too little, which can prevent brain cells from getting glucose.

Working with doctors at Low cost clinics in Las Vegas and managing your blood sugar levels can protect you from complications related to diabetes.