The word "diabetes" is translated from Greek as "outflow", and therefore the phrase "diabetes mellitus" is literally translated as the loss of sugar, which reflects one of their characteristic properties - the loss of glucose in the urine.
Types of disease
There are two types of diabetes - the first and second. The first type of disease occurs most often in children. In this case, as a result of damage to the insulin apparatus of the pancreas, its absolute insufficiency develops. In type 2 diabetes, there is insulin resistance and relative insulin deficiency. No matter how much they talk about this insidious disease, so far medicine can have little effect on its appearance, because there are no vaccinations against it. But it is very important to pay attention to the very first signs of diabetes in a timely manner so that the child does not immediately go to intensive care from home, and so that the question of saving his life does not have to be raised.
Signs of diabetes in children
The initial symptoms of the disease include the following: thirst, frequent and copious urination, increased appetite, weight loss. Given the often late visit to the doctor, all these symptoms should be considered in more detail.
Thirst is the classic first sign of diabetes in children. Babies drink fluids differently throughout the day. Some people like to drink a lot, others need to be forced to drink at least some amount of tea or juice.
It is precisely because of this feature that sometimes parents do not immediately notice that the child has begun to go into the kitchen more often - to drink water, and at night - to go to the toilet, which was not observed before. The kid takes his every step under the vigilant parental gaze, and when he grows up, he naturally becomes more independent and does not even always complain. Modern teenagers and parents now communicate very little, just a few hours a day. But if parents notice that a small or growing child has lost weight, began to get tired quickly, it is worth taking a closer look at how much water he drinks. It is water, because a child can drink a lot of favorite drinks. And be sure to follow - how often the child visits the toilet, and whether he wakes up at night for this. Often the first sign of diabetes in children is enuresis - bedwetting. Gradually, the child's condition worsens: weakness grows, the skin and mucous membranes become dry, bright, the so-called diabetic blush appears. If you miss this moment and do not help, a diabetic coma may develop.
A blood test to determine the disease
If there is even a slight cause for concern, you should not look for an explanation for this in rapid growth,hot weather or the presence of worms - you should immediately show the child to the doctor. If there is no time for this, postponing a visit to the doctor for later, you need to donate, first of all, blood for sugar, such an analysis is done in any laboratory. The concentration of sugar in the blood should not go beyond 3.3-5.5 mmol / l. Blood sampling is carried out in the morning on an empty stomach, in addition, the last meal should be no later than 19 pm. Sometimes, given the different methods, normal sugar levels may have limits of 4.4-6.6 mmol / l. In any case, because of the fear of prescribing insulin, you should not try to "treat" the child on your own with a diet. This can only worsen the condition. If an increase in blood glucose is detected, the child must be treated in a hospital.
How to identify an illness in an infant?
Diabetes can develop at any age, even in infants. In this case, the disease is accompanied by indigestion, nervousness. It is important to pay attention to these very first signs of diabetes. The baby often and greedily sucks the breast or drinks water, but does not gain weight, his condition quickly worsens. Close contact with the baby will allow you to smell acetone from the mouth, and wet diapers can also smell of acetone.
Although the appearance of smell is not the first sign of diabetes, but a manifestation of the decompensation of the disease, often parents do not feel it even in the case of a serious condition of the baby. Often in young children, the first signs of diabetes mellitus are hidden under the symptoms of other acutediseases - intestinal infection, deterioration after a viral infection. In children, most often diabetes develops rapidly, but sometimes it can happen gradually. In this case, the child may experience long-term pustular skin diseases - barley, seizures, due to the presence of sugar in the urine, girls may develop vulvovaginitis - inflammation of the genital organs. In no case should such symptoms be ignored so as not to miss the onset of an insidious disease.
Symptoms in adults
In the adult population, the general clinical characteristics of the disease look quite typical. One of the first signs of diabetes is an increase in the volume of urine excreted during the day, in some cases even exceeding 10 liters. This symptom is caused by certain properties of high glucose levels in the urine. The emerging desire to drink is due to dehydration of the body and the appearance of a feeling of dryness in the mouth. Since not only glucose, which came with food, but also synthesized in the body from fats and proteins, is lost in the urine, a sharp drop in weight is observed with an insulin-dependent disease.
Other symptoms include uncontrolled appetite, itching, often manifested in the perineum and genitals, fatigue, lethargy, drowsiness, decreased ability to work. The prolonged development of the disease leads to the appearance of complex vascular disorders, which is expressed by damage to the vessels of the retina, impaired renal function, and progressive atherosclerosis. At the same time, it increasesthe risk of myocardial infarction, circulatory disorders of the brain, gangrene of the legs. With a lack of insulin, carbohydrate metabolism is the first to be disturbed in the body. There is insufficient penetration of glucose into the muscles and adipose tissue of the body, improper production of glycogen and the conversion of carbohydrates into fats. Increased excretion of glucose from cells leads to an increase in its accumulation in the blood and further appearance in the urine. With a latent form of the disease, the concentration of sugar in the blood taken in the morning before meals may be normal, and the disease is detected only during additional tests that determine the ability of the body to process the right amount of glucose.
What should I pay attention to?
For a he althcare professional, diagnosing diabetes mellitus with a blood sample taken is fairly easy. But most people don't check their blood glucose levels because the signs of the disease are so subtle that they don't matter.
All overweight people over 45 should have their blood glucose tested, whether or not they have the earliest signs of diabetes. It is especially important to do this with existing risk factors, if any of the following symptoms are observed:
- constant presence of thirst;
- strong feeling of hunger;
- weakness;
- excessive urination, especially at night;
- weight loss;
- vision problems;
- slow healing wounds.
Symptoms of diabetes inmen
What do men need to know, especially as they approach the age of 50? Often the first sign of diabetes in men is a decrease in potency. It can be a signal that a person has had a high blood glucose level for quite a long time. Due to impaired metabolism, atherosclerotic plaques appear, the passage of blood in the arteries is disturbed. The vessels that carry blood to the penis are the first to suffer. Next - the main vessels that feed the heart and brain. This can already lead to a heart attack or stroke - more serious consequences than impotence. In addition to provoking atherosclerosis, diabetes damages the nerve fibers responsible for erection and urination. One of the first signs of diabetes in men overcoming the age limit of 50 years are lethargy, apathy, fatigue. Most often, the patient's condition worsens not suddenly, but gradually. Usually older men justify such symptoms with natural body changes without any treatment.
What are the first signs of diabetes in women? This is important to know
There are primary and secondary signs of diabetes in women. The primary signs of the disease are as follows:
- Polydipsia - continuous thirst.
- Polyuria - excessive urination.
- Polyphagia - a feeling of continuous hunger, not satisfied even by high-calorie food.
- Perceptible smell of acetone from the mouth.
When the above first signs of the disease are detected in women, diabetes mellitusoften confirmed by blood tests. Secondary clinical signs of the disease:
- decrease in the sharpness of vision, loss of clarity, feeling of a veil before the eyes; fatigue;
- increasing vaginal dryness;
- appearance of cramps in the muscles of the legs, tingling sensation and numbness of the upper and lower extremities;
- decrease in the ability of tissue regeneration - the appearance of ulcers and non-healing wounds;
- body temperature drops below 35 degrees;
- significant hair loss;
- formation of yellowish growths on the skin;
- inflammatory disorders and vaginal dysbacteriosis.
Often the very first signs of diabetes in women appear in menopause, when the whole organism is being restructured.
Degrees of development of the disease
Symptoms determine the severity of the disease:
- Mild - no smell of acetone from the mouth.
- When examining the fundus, an ophthalmologist can detect an initial degree of retinopathy. The concentration of glucose in the blood does not rise above 8 mmol / l.
- Medium degree - the sugar content is not more than 12 mmol / l. Ketoacidosis is diagnosed, there is a sharp smell of acetone in the exhaled air.
- Severe diabetes mellitus - blood glucose is above 12 mmol / l, retinopathy of 3-4 degrees is diagnosed, kidney function is impaired.
Primary symptoms come on abruptly, and the woman can tell exactly when they occur. Secondaryappear over a sufficiently long period, and often they are simply ignored due to certain specifics. The fact that the disease already exists or is just beginning is indicated by everyday well-being. The first sign of diabetes in women is increased hair loss. Normally, a person loses up to 100 hairs every day, if there are much more, it is worth checking the body for sugar content.
Since the growth of hair is directly dependent on the metabolism in the body, problems arise with this when the disease develops. Hair becomes brittle, thin, grows slowly. Quite often, among the first signs of diabetes in women, drowsiness is manifested. The body does not have enough energy to accumulate the required amount of glucose in the cells. During the day, a woman feels general weakness, which must necessarily serve as a reason to check the level of glucose in the body. The first manifestations of diabetes also include itching, felt on the palms and feet. This symptom occurs in most cases. It is necessary to pay attention to how scratches and wounds heal. Even a small cut can heal for 2-3 weeks, becoming inflamed again and again. However, one should not rush to conclusions about the presence of the disease only by such a symptom, since this symptom may indicate some gynecological problems. But if such a symptom occurs along with the rest, then this may well be an alarm signal about the appearance of excess glucose in the blood.
Type 1 disease
It is very important to pay attention to the first signstype 1 diabetes:
- Persistent thirst: a person drinks up to 3-5 liters of water or other liquid during the day.
- The smell of acetone in the air exhaled by a person.
- The patient's appetite grows, he absorbs a huge amount of food, but against this background, the weight invariably falls.
- Frequent and profuse urination, especially at night.
- Poor healing of wounds and cuts. The skin itches, fungus or boils often appear.
- One of the first signs of diabetes in girls can be frequent thrush.
Type 1 diabetes often occurs weeks later due to an untreated viral illness or after severe stress.
Gangrene
When diabetes mellitus, the walls of blood vessels are damaged from the inside, which leads to their narrowing and calcification. Gradually, such vessels thrombose, there is a sharp decrease in blood flow in the lower extremities. Deterioration of the state of the vessels in this disease can lead to the manifestation of the so-called diabetic foot (gangrene). To save the leg in this case, it is necessary to make every effort to restore blood circulation in the lower extremities. The first signs of gangrene in diabetes mellitus often occur in patients with diabetic foot and damage to the vessels of the foot and lower leg as a result of anaerobic microorganisms entering the body. The reason for this can be walking with bare feet on the ground in summer, punctures of the skin of the foot with wire, a thorn, and any stabbing wounds. It happens that patients do not attach much importance to such injections,however, after some time, a high temperature is detected, black blisters with liquid form, swelling appears and spreads rapidly. The general condition of the body is rapidly deteriorating. In such cases, you should never hesitate.
When the doctor confirms gangrene, an urgent amputation to he althy tissues is performed, very strong antibiotics are used and resuscitation therapy is underway. Surgical intervention, applied in a timely manner, can save the lives of about 70% of patients with gas gangrene.
Do not forget that diabetes is a complex and difficult disease that needs to be identified as early as possible. Therefore, it is important to know what the first signs of diabetes can appear at the very beginning of the disease. The course of treatment of the disease and the prevention of serious pathologies depend on this.
