Signs and Symptoms of Diabetes
Diabetes often goes undiagnosed as the signs and symptoms of diabetes are unnoticeable and harmless. The signs and symptoms of diabetes may vary from person to person. The signs and symptoms of diabetes are almost similar in both the types of diabetes. This is because blood sugar level is high in both the types either due to little or no production of insulin.
There are certain signs and symptoms that help in determining increased sugar levels or presence of inadequate amount of glucose in the cells. The early detection of signs and symptoms of diabetes help in early treatment thereby decreasing the chance of developing other complications of diabetes. The signs and symptoms of diabetes include:
Excessive Thirst (Polydipsia): Increased thirst is the first warning sign of diabetes. As the concentration of sugar increases in your blood, it draws water from your tissues and you may feel dehydrated. This makes you feel thirsty.
Frequent Urination (Polyuria): Presence of excess sugar may also increase your urine production. This is because when excess sugar builds up in the blood, body tries to get rid of it by excreting it through urine. Also when you feel thirsty you drink a lot of water, which can lead to frequent urination.
Increased Hunger (Polyphegia): Due to the less production of insulin, glucose doesn't get into the cells and body's sugar is not converted into energy. Thus the muscles and organs become depleted of energy, which causes intense hunger that may continue even after the meals.
Weight Gain or Loss: Another sign of diabetes is a sudden increase or decrease in a weight. Due to the increased hunger and in order to compensate for lost fluids and glucose, you may increase your appetite by eating more than usual. This may lead to weight gain. But sometimes despite of eating more than normal you may lose weight. This is because, your muscle tissues and fat stores don't get enough sugar to generate energy and therefore they may shrink.
Fatigue: When enough insulin is not produced, the cells get deprived of energy. This makes you feel tired. Since the cells can't convert the sugar into energy, reserved fats are converted into energy. When fat is broken down it uses more energy than sugar. Due to the loss of excess energy you feel more tired.
Irritability: Irritability is also one of the warning signs of diabetes. The insufficient supply of glucose to the brain and other parts of body may make you feel tired, uneasy and irritable.
Blurred Vision: Excess amount of sugar in the blood may pull fluid out of the tissues including the lenses of your eyes, which may affect the ability of lenses to focus clearly resulting in blurred vision.
Frequent Infections: Whenever the blood sugar level fluctuates, you may have fungal or bacterial infections like urinary tract infection or skin infection. Women can have bladder or vaginal infections.
Swollen, Red, Tender Gums: High sugar levels may increase the risk of infection in the gums and in the bones that hold the teeth in place. Due to this either your teeth becomes lose or you may develop pus in your gums.
Slow Healing of Wounds: Diabetes affects the body's ability of healing. Increased sugar levels affect the functioning of white blood cells that are responsible for body immune system. Due to the improper functioning of white blood cells, the wound doesn't heal quickly.
These were the most common signs and symptoms of diabetes. The other signs and symptoms of diabetes include:
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Yeast infections
- Dry mouth
- Itching of the skin (especially around groin or vaginal area)
- Headaches
- Impotency
- Tingling and numbness of hands and feet
- Flu-like symptoms