Mar 27 2008
Information on Diabetes Complication Issues
Diabetes is considered as being a chronic and incurable disease, one which occurs when the body does not produce any or enough insulin, which results in leading to an excess of sugar in the blood. Insulin is a hormone which helps the cells in the body to be able to use the glucose in food, and cells require this energy in order to be able to function properly.
Diabetes is a condition which interferes with the body’s ability to produce insulin and this results in causing a series of malfunctions, including an excess of glucose in the blood and urine. Over time, diabetes can actually lead to be debilitating and even life-threatening.
Diabetes Complications
There are various different complications that can be caused by diabetes, including diabetic retinopathy, erectile dysfunction, hypoglycemia, kidney disease, kidney failure, stomach nerve damage, and sexual and urologic problems.
Erectile dysfunction is one of the most common diabetes complications, and this is a term which refers to the repeated inability to get or keep an erection that is firm enough for sexual intercourse. Erectile dysfunction can be a total inability to achieve erection, or an inconsistent ability to do so, and besides diabetes, experts believe that there are certain psychological factors which can cause erectile dysfunction, such as stress, anxiety, guilt, low self-esteem and fear of sexual failure.
Another of the most common diabetes complications is kidney disease, and diabetes is actually known as being the most common cause of kidney failure of all, as it accounts for nearly 45 percent of new cases. As well, even when diabetes is controlled and managed properly, it can still lead to nephropathy and kidney failure.
When kidney failure, another of the possible diabetes complications, develops, you need treatment in order to replace the work that your kidneys normally perform. Your choices are hemodialysis, which requires a machine that is used to filter your blood outside of your body, peritoneal dialysis, which uses the lining of your belly in order to filter your blood inside of your body, and kidney transplantation, in which a new kidney is actually placed inside of your body to replace the one that failed.
There are a number of other possible diabetes complications as well, however the ones discussed here are the most common and so they are the ones that you should watch out for most. By maintaining a healthy lifestyle, which means eating a nutritious diet and getting plenty of exercise, you will be able to prevent your body from suffering from any of these diabetic complications.