As several people might already be aware, November is American Diabetes Month. During this time, each and every citizen of the country is expected to learn what it means to be diabetic and how one can stay healthy. A shocking report says that as many as 29 million people in the country currently have diabetes. To put it simply, 1 in 11 Americans have diabetes today. The bad news is it is not just that number! Another 86 million people are found to be at risk for contracting the disease, which means for some it is already too late to sit idle and watch what happens. It’s time to take measures to prevent the disorder, as well as having more treatments available to monitor those with it already.

Some Unknown Facts about American Diabetes:

As mentioned earlier, a large number of people are found to be at risk for contracting diabetes. This means that they are in the pre-diabetes phase. To put it more elaborately, it can be said that 1 in 3 adults in the U.S. have pre-diabetes and shockingly, 9 out of 10 people with pre-diabetes are not aware that they have it. Also, in the United States, 1 in 4 people are not even aware that they have diabetes.

Annually, the disorder causes almost $245 billion dollars in medical bills and/or lost salaries. People with diabetes are 2 times as likely to be hospitalized because of strokes and heart attacks that are directly associated with its onset. Moreover, this disorder is found to be the cause of nearly 50% of kidney failure cases. Also, it is found to be responsible for nearly 50% of all the amputations occurring in adults, and more than 50% of all the people with diabetes are found to have various forms of nerve damage, resulting in pain, decreased digestion, sexual dysfunction, and other nerve issues. Several people with diabetes are found to be contracting advanced forms of diabetic retinopathy, which greatly increases the risk of vision loss.

Understanding the Types of Diabetes:

In American Diabetes Month, it’s important for people to understand that not all types of diabetes are the same, even if some of the symptoms seem similar. The different types of diabetes are:

Type 1 Diabetes:

This is otherwise known as juvenile diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes. This occurs when an individual’s body is unable to synthesize insulin, which is the hormone that controls blood glucose levels. While it’s true that this type of diabetes can strike a person at any age, this is more often occurring in the people below 18. An important note about type 1 diabetes is that, currently, there is no way to prevent it.

Type 2 Diabetes:

This is the most common type of diabetes in the country. About 90% of all the cases of diabetes today is type 2. Type 2 diabetes develops when an individual’s body is unable to produce sufficient levels of insulin so as to control the blood glucose levels. More often, this type of diabetes is associated with obesity. This means that a balanced diet combined with physical activity can be able to prevent or manage diabetes.

Gestational Diabetes:

As the name suggests, this is the type of diabetes that occurs during  pregnancy. This is relatively rare, as it can sometimes occur in women if they are overweight before conception.

What are the risk factors for diabetes?

It is pretty clear that a common risk factor for each type of diabetes is being overweight. Besides this, the people who follow a sedentary lifestyle and the individuals in a family with a history of the disease are also at a greater risk of developing it during their lifetime. The individuals, who suspect that they or their family members are at risk for developing diabetes, consult with a physician right away. Also, there are some risk assessment tests available to know more about the level of risk.

What can be done to prevent diabetes?

There is no way to prevent type 1. But, there are ways to prevent type 2 diabetes. To put it simply, losing weight, eating a healthy diet, and doing more physical activities could largely decrease the risk for developing type 2 diabetes. In order to do these effectively, there are a few tips to follow. They are:

• Drinking plenty of water
• Losing excess body fat
• Following a plant-based, low-calorie diet
• Getting enough sleep
• Getting plenty of exercises

What can we do for American Diabetes Month?

Anyone can use this diabetes month to create awareness among people about the risk factors and encourage them to make healthy alterations in their lifestyle. Ask friends and colleagues to take stairs instead of escalators, prevent them to stop drinking sweetened beverages, ask other people about taking regular checkups, and speak to the people about the significance of healthy eating and physical activities. Remember, these are just a few ideas. Anyone can come up with new ideas to make the diabetes month effective in preventing and controlling diabetes in the country.