17 Warning Signs of Diabetes

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Diabetes is a serious medical condition that affects millions of people around the world. Yet, research suggests that 1 in 4 adults living with the disease are not aware of it, which can lead to serious complications. In this article, you’ll discover the various warning signs of diabetes. Being aware of the warning signs early can help you get diagnosed and prevent life-threatening complications. Always remember to alert your doctor whenever you notice these signs, especially if you have any of the common risk factors for diabetes. Let us get started.

Hunger

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Hungry Woman – Shutterstock.com

Feeling increased hunger even after eating? That could be a telltale sign of diabetes. Because your body isn’t able to properly convert the food you eat into energy, you might start feeling hungry all the time. The lack of energy causes increased appetite.

Fatigue

Fatigued man – rush.edu

Fatigue can be brought about by various factors. One of the reasons you have less energy could be because of your body’s inability to take in glucose, which is a sign of diabetes. This lack of energy could also be caused by dehydration from increased urination.

Dry Mouth


Dry Mouth – capalbodentalgroup.com

Diabetes signs sometimes involve your mouth. Lack of adequate fluids in your body due to increased urination may result in your mouth feeling dry. Having a dry mouth is a sign of high blood sugar and it could also lead to rampant tooth decay.

Frequent Urination

Toilet sign – wisegeekhealth.com

You may experience increased urination due to excess sugar (glucose) building up in your blood. Your kidney can’t filter and absorb all the excess sugar. As a result, the excess sugar is excreted into your urine, which leads to frequent urination.

Extreme Thirst



As you urinate more, body fluids are dragged along from your tissues. This could get you dehydrated, resulting in you feeling more thirsty than normal. And the more you drink fluids to quench the thirst, the more you’ll urinate.

Weight Loss

Weight loss math – fitnessbright.com

You may experience sudden, unintentional weight loss because of inadequate insulin, which prevents your body from absorbing glucose to use for energy. This forces the body to burn fat and muscle for energy, resulting in weight loss. Weight fluctuations are a common sign of type 1 diabetes.

Blurred Vision

Blurred vision – seedrjudd.com

According to WebMD, blurred vision could be a sign of high blood sugar. The increased levels of sugar in your blood may be absorbing fluids from the lenses of your eyes. This causes them to change shape and affects your ability to focus.

Dry & Itchy Skin

Dry Skin – acneeinstein.com

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Lack of moisture in your body due to high blood sugar levels may cause your skin to dry and itch. As you lose fluids because of increased urination, your body gets dehydrated, which results in dry and itchy skin.

Slow-healing Wounds



Slow healing wound – livestrong.com

Another potential sign of diabetes is having cuts and bruises that are slow to heal. This may be because of high blood sugar levels that affect your blood flow and cause nerve damage. Blood may be finding it hard to reach the areas affected by the wounds.

Pain or Numbness in Your Feet or Legs


Numb feet – livestrong.com

Pain, tingling, or numbness in the feet or legs is another result of nerve damage, which may be brought by diabetes. You may also experience a loss of feeling in the arms and hands. Over time, this nerve damage can develop throughout the body.

Fruity or Sweet Breath

Breath – weightlossgroove.com

A sweet and fruity odor in your breath might be an indication of diabetes. The bad breath could be a result of high levels of ketone in the blood. Ketones are produced when your body starts burning fat because your cells don’t receive the glucose they need for energy.

Nausea and Vomiting

Nausea – yourbutterflymoment.com

Nausea and vomiting could be a sign of diabetes. High blood glucose levels can slow down stomach and intestinal movements. This causes food to be retained in the stomach for longer than normal, and may result in nausea and vomiting.

Frequent Headaches

Headache man – health.havard.edu

Frequent headaches could be a sign of high or low blood glucose. The headaches are often moderate to severe in nature and getting your blood sugar under control may offer relief. If the headache is severe, you should talk to your doctor.

Irritable Behavior


Anger – aarp.org

Diabetes may have an effect on a person’s mood. For instance, low or high blood glucose may make them sad and easily annoyed. Fluctuations in blood sugar levels may also cause nervousness, anxiety, and confusion.

Erectile Dysfunction



Erectile dysfunction – mid-day.com

If you’re a man with a problem getting and maintaining an erection, it could be a sign of diabetes. Diabetes can impair the nerves, blood vessels and muscle function that control erection. Erectile dysfunction is more common as men with diabetes age.

Bad Stomach Pains


Stomach pain – dreamstime.com

Frequent stomach pains may be a result of extremely high or extremely low blood sugar levels. Diabetes can damage the vagus nerve and slow down your digestion. This causes food to stay longer in your stomach and results in discomfort.

Yeast Infections

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Yeast infections may occur in both men and women with diabetes. The yeast feeds on the excessive glucose and infections may occur in warm, moist areas of the body such as between fingers and toes, underarms, and under the breasts.


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