Facts about Diabetes

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When you have diabetes, taking care of yourself is important. Your doctor and health care team are there to help you. However, most of your day-to-day diabetes care is up to you and your family.

There is no doubt about it, having diabetes is life-changing. People with diabetes say they sometimes feel overwhelmed. Some say they feel alone. This is not the case, you are not alone. Million’s of people have diabetes.

• When you have diabetes, your body has a harder time changing the food you eat into the energy you need.
• Diabetes causes sugar to build up in the blood. If the sugar stays high, it can slowly damage the heart, kidneys, eyes, and feet.
• Diabetes is a life-long disease, but you can control it by eating right and moving your body more. Most people also have to take pills or insulin shots.
• It takes time and practice to learn how to do these things. You and your health care team can work together to find the best way to control your diabetes.
• People with diabetes often have other health problems. Stopping smoking, controlling your blood pressure, and getting help with depression will help your diabetes.

Taking these small steps will help you become a healthier and better diabetic. You have the choice on how you want to live, and how long you do! Taking care of yourself in the early stages of your diagnosis will prevent many complications that most diabetics will face later down the road.

Foot care is the number one thing that all diabetic must attend to. If there is a small cut on your foot that you don’t feel, it can become infected and cause you to lose a limb.

Make sure that you check your feet, toes and heels weekly if not daily. Make sure to keep your feet well maintained by applying lotion to the feet, but never between the toes, as this can cause blisters that could form into larger wounds. The above picture is a picture of a person with diabetes who has an ulcer due to a blister that was left unchecked.

There are hundreds of site and things that you can use to learn how to better take care of yourself. Even if you dont have medical insurance, there are community resources that you can use that will help you with your testing supplies and other diabetic needs.