Early Type 2 Diabetes Symptoms

Type 2 Diabetes is a chronic illness that develops when you're body is unable to develop or make proper use of insulin. Insulin is the hormone that helps the body convert food into energy and without it, your body becomes unable to absorb the nutriments it needs and to control the amount of sugar released into the blood stream. This illness affects a great many people in the UK, the risks are considerably higher for people who are over 45 and being clinically overweight is also a large risk factor.



If left untreated, type 2 diabetes can have some very serious side effects. These include complications such as nerve damage - which can lead to amputation- eye disease, kidney failure and the risk of other serious disease - such as heart disease - is also increased.



However, there are a number of ways in which you can cut your risk of developing type 2 diabetes - these include losing weight, keeping a close eye on your diet and making sure you have plenty of exercise and looking at ways to lower your blood pressure if it is high. Another important factor to consider is being vigilant for the warning signs of diabetes. Many people miss early warning signs and end up not being diagnosed until their illness has caused complications. These can be harder to treat and manage than diabetes itself, so it's very important to spot it as early as possible.

Early warning signs for diabetes include an unusually strong thirst and need to urinate as well as extreme hunger. This is also often accompanied by unusual weight loss and extreme tiredness. You could also notice symptoms such as blurred vision, frequent infections - in the skin, bladder or gums - and irritation. Other warning signs can be a tingling or numbness in your hands or feet and cuts and bruises that take an unusually long time to heal.



If you recognise symptoms such as these, you should have the levels of glucose in your blood tested as soon as possible. Caught early and managed carefully, type 2 diabetes can be successfully treated and controlled through a variety of methods. These can range from a careful control of diet to the regulation of glucose levels with the help of insulin injections.



The earlier you carry out a diabetes test or are identified as diabetic, the sooner you can make the changes to your life that will help you manage this chronic illness as successfully as possible.