Over 9% of Americans have diabetes, one of the country’s most prominent conditions. Joseph Gelinas, ARPN-CNP, and the practitioners at Grand Lake Healthcare in Grove, Oklahoma, frequently help diabetes patients with symptom relief through services, including diet counseling and physical therapy to combat joint pain and numbness. Living a full life with diabetes is entirely possible with the right team on your side. Let the team at Grand Lake Healthcare help you by calling the office or scheduling an appointment online today.
Diabetes is a very common disease that occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, has reached levels that are too high. Insulin, a hormone produced by your pancreas, allows glucose found in the food you eat to reach your cells and produce energy. Diabetes occurs when your body either doesn’t produce enough energy or doesn’t utilize it well. When your body doesn’t have enough glucose or uses it poorly, it can lead to serious health problems.
There are actually two types of diabetes:
When your body doesn’t make enough insulin, it indicates a type 1 diabetes diagnosis. The result is your immune system destroys your pancreatic cells that produce insulin. Type 1 diabetes sufferers, who typically get diagnosed as children or teens, must take insulin every day.
Generally, type 2 diabetes sufferers have certain problems that cause their bodies to use the insulin produced by their pancreas poorly. It typically develops in middle-aged and older people and is the more common type of diabetes.
Even though there isn’t a cure for diabetes, the medical professionals at Grand Lake Healthcare can help you manage the disease and live a full life. Without effective management, diabetes can be fatal.
Most experts believe type 1 diabetes is caused by genetics or certain factors in the environment, including viruses that can trigger the disease. Type 2 diabetes, on the other hand, is caused by several known factors, including:
You can develop type 2 diabetes at almost any age, even during childhood. You’re more likely than most to develop type 2 diabetes if you have a family history of the disease, or already have certain underlying health problems, such as high blood pressure.
Here are some of the most common signs and symptoms of diabetes:
Those who end up getting type 1 diabetes notice symptoms come on suddenly, typically over a period of a few days or weeks. Type 2 diabetes symptoms tend to appear gradually over the course of several years.
At Grand Lake Healthcare, the team of providers helps you effectively manage diabetes to recapture an excellent overall quality of life. First, practitioners help provide you with much-needed relief from painful diabetes-related symptoms such as feet numbness — a common symptom for older patients — with targeted medication.
For those with type 1 diabetes, you need to take insulin every day to maintain your health. However, in all cases of diabetes, your provider also helps you manage the disease with personalized treatment plans consisting of physical activity programs and nutritional counseling. Getting into the habit of exercising and eating right with the help of trained professionals is essentially the best way to fight diabetes.
It’s not easy to do on your own, but with the help of Grand Lake Healthcare, there’s no reason you shouldn’t be limited in your everyday life despite a diabetes diagnosis.
To schedule an appointment at Grand Lake Healthcare and learn more about diabetes management, call the office or use the online booking tool today.
