Things you need to know about diabetes:
Diabetes is a chronic medical condition that occurs when your pancreas loses its ability to produce a hormone called insulin, or when your body cannot use the insulin produced by your pancreas.
Diabetes is a chronic medical condition that occurs when your pancreas loses its ability to produce a hormone called insulin, or when your body cannot use the insulin produced by your pancreas.
A condition where you cannot produce or use insulin is called hyperglycemia. Blood glucose levels increase and in the long run this damages your body and cause various organs and tissues to fail.
Types of diabetes:
Type 1 diabetes:
the pancreas produces very little or sometimes no insulin.
Type 2 diabetes:
the body makes poor use of the insulin it produces
Gestational diabetes: high blood glucose during pregnancy causes complications for both mother and baby. Women have an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes 3 to 6 years after giving birth. In addition, exposure to hyperglycemia in utero results in a high likelihood of the child becoming overweight or obese, and is associated with type 2 diabetes.
What are the different medications used to treat type 1 diabetes?
With type 1 diabetes, patients must take insulin because their bodies can no longer produce it. Different types of insulin work at different speeds and have different effects that last for different lengths of time. To understand what insulin you need, ask your healthcare provider to measure your blood sugar and suggest a type of insulin.
Insulin is taken with a needle and syringe, an insulin pen, or an insulin pump. You must inject insulin several times a day with a needle and syringe, even with food. Few people use inhalers, injection ports, and jet injectors to administer insulin.
What are the different drugs to treat type 2 diabetes?
Treatment for type 2 diabetes includes healthy eating, regular exercise, weight loss, diabetes medication or insulin therapy, and monitoring your blood sugar.
Below are some diabetes medications:
Metformin (Fortamet, Glumetza): reduces the production of glucose in the liver and allows the body to use insulin.
Possible side effects: B-12 deficiency, nausea, abdominal pain, bloating, and diarrhea
Sulfonylureas (Glyburide, Glipizide, Glimepiride): help secretes more insulin in the body.
Glinides (Repaglinide, Nateglinide): help stimulate the pancreas to secrete more insulin.
Thiazolidinediones (rosiglitazone, pioglitazone): help the body's tissues become more sensitive to insulin.
Possible side effects: congestive heart failure, bladder cancer (when using pioglitazone), bone fractures, high cholesterol (when using rosiglitazone), and weight gain
DPP-4 inhibitors (Saxagliptin, Sitagliptin, Linagliptin) reduce blood sugar levels.
Possible side effects: pancreatitis and joint pain
GLP-1 receptor agonists (Exenatide, Liraglutide, Semaglutide):
These are injectable drugs that slow digestion and lower blood sugar.
Possible side effects: pancreatitis, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea
Possible side effects: amputations and broken bones (when consuming canagliflozin), gangrene, vaginal yeast infections, urinary tract infections, low blood pressure, and high cholesterol
Still, you need to understand your treatment plan and talk to your healthcare provider before you start taking diabetes medications. Ask them about your blood sugar target, what to do if your blood glucose goes high or low, and any risks associated with your medications.
If you have started taking medication or insulin, you still need to follow a healthy diet and stop smoking. In addition, engage in regular physical activity to help manage diabetes.
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