8 Telltale Signs of Pre-Diabetes November 30, 2017

Diabetes refers to a range of diseases that result from glucose imbalance – determined by how your body processes sugar. High levels of glucose in your blood can have serious and lasting effects on your health, whether you have Pre-diabetes or develop Type 2 diabetes.

Pre-diabetes may be reversed if you increase your level of exercise and focus on a healthy, balance diet. When entering the pre-diabetes phase, your cells develop a resistance to insulin. Signs that you may have developed pre-diabetes or Type 2 diabetes can have symptoms including the following:

• Feeling dehydrated and drinking more often
• Making more frequent trips to the bathroom to urinate
• An increase in appetite – or even sudden weight loss
• Ketones present in your urine
• Extreme tiredness and irritability
• Changes in your vision; blurriness
• Sores that don’t heal
• Frequent gum, skin or vaginal infections

Your family history, weight, level of activity, blood pressure, age and even race can all play a role in your personal risk factor of developing diabetes. Talk to your physician if you are experiencing any sudden changes in your health and suspect your weight or lifestyle may be playing a role in developing symptoms. At Barrier Islands Free Medical Clinic, we offer a comprehensive High Risk Disease Management Program to our patients. Our volunteer physicians have the ability to measure HgbA1c (glycated haemoglobin) levels onsite to get an overall picture of what a patient’s average blood sugar levels have been over a period of weeks/months. For those with diabetes, this is important as the higher the HbA1c, the greater the risk of developing diabetes-related complications.

Visit http://www.diabetes.org/ to learn more.

Barrier Islands Free Medical Clinic provides medical care to eligible patients, just like any family practitioner or internist – but it is free. We serve uninsured adults living at or below 200 % of the Federal poverty level who live or work on Johns, Wadmalaw or James Islands. You can follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.