5 signs you may suffer from pre-diabetes

To determine a state of diabetes, physicians look at a patient’s blood glucose levels…but what exactly does that mean?

Glucose is a sugar, a soluble carbohydrate consisting of 6 carbon, 12 hydrogen, and 6 oxygen atoms. To be more specific, glucose is known as a simple sugar or monosaccharide, as it exists as a single molecule.

Other sugars are known as polysaccharides or ‘complex’ sugars and consist of a combination of monosaccharides such as glucose. However, the body must go through additional steps to break down the polysaccharides into monosaccharides so they can be absorbed by the body as fuel.

It is another Saturday night and you find yourself at a friend’s house for a get together. You have an amazing meal and sadly find yourself turning down third’s. While you rest after the dinner marathon, your body is hard at work processing the protein, carbs, and fats that just entered the body.

Polysaccharides are converted into monosaccharides so that they can be absorbed. Once these simple sugars enter our tissues, their journey can take many paths. The glucose could be used right away to power cells, it could be converted into another form, or the body may store it for future use. When your first ingest the food, beta cells take notice.

Beta cells

These cells are responsible for releasing a hormone known as insulin into the bloodstream. Insulin acts like a bouncer at a club. When present, the door is open and glucose can be transported into the cells, but when the bouncer leaves, the door locks and no sugars are partying tonight.

Diabetes types

Patients are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when the beta cells fail to produce adequate insulin, in which case glucose cannot enter the cells and proceeds to build up in the blood leading to glycosuria – sugary urine. This also makes the body think it’s starving since it isn’t receiving the fuel it needs. The body compensates by breaking down other sources of fuel such as muscles (protein), keto bodies, and carbs. Patients with type 1 diabetes often demonstrate significant weight loss, thirst, hunger, irritability, blurred vision, or fatigue among others.

Patients with type 2 diabetes have developed a resistance to the action of insulin, so even though it circulates in the blood, it doesn’t bind to the cell and allow glucose to enter. With all of these potential complications, knowledge is power.

Early warning signs

Recognizing early warning signs could lead to early treatment and potentially life-saving interventions. Changes in the body’s routine are often ways of noticing what’s going on internally. Those in a prediabetic stage may notice the following :

1. Frequent urination

2. Increased thirst

3. Blurred vision

With all of the excess glucose in the body, excess fluid can cause the lens of the eye to swell. The lens changes shape in response to light, and in those unaffected by diabetes, this process happens automatically. However, if there is extra fluid, the lens cannot alter its shape like normal leading to blurry vision.

4. Fatigue

When it’s syrup season and the sap is running, it often takes a while to fill the bucket because of how thick the sap is. When the body enters a state of hyperglycemia, the blood becomes thick and ‘sappy’. This delays the delivery of nutrients to the cell, how effectively it can take away waste products, and causes the blood to circulate more slowly. This causes a sense of sluggishness.

5. Darkened skin

When insulin builds up in the blood, it has the potential to alter skin cells. This can lead to a condition known as acanthosis nigricans, most commonly presenting as darkened skin in folds of the skin such as the armpits, neck, or groin.

Here are some ways to manage the prediabetic state :

Something fishy. The components EPA, DHA, and ALA found in fish and seafood have the potential to increase insulin sensitivity and preserve kidney function. This allows the body to respond to the circulating insulin allowing glucose to enter the cell in addition to supporting the kidneys as they filter out excess glucose. Products such as VegOmega 3 are a way to attain these fatty acids and possibly prevent or delay the transition from prediabetes to a complete diabetic condition.

Get moving! Obesity is one of the leading contributors to the development of diabetes. When children and adolescents lost weight, their insulin sensitivity went up. In another study looking at pregnant mothers, physical activity contributed to a reduction in the risk of their child developing diabetes.

Orange you glad you take curcumin? Curcumin, the active component in the spice turmeric may delay the development of diabetes. This occurs because curcumin improves the function of the beta cells which produce insulin, and protect them from damage over time.