Diabetes

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes mellitus, which is commonly known as diabetes, is a metabolic disease. It causes high blood sugar. The hormone insulin transports sugar from the blood into your cells for storing and utilizing it for generating energy. During diabetes, the body either fails to produce enough insulin or fails to use the insulin that is produced effectively.

If high blood sugar is left untreated for a long time, it can cause serious trouble to your nerves, kidneys, eyes, and other organs.

Here are a few types of diabetes:

Type 1 Diabetes:

It is an autoimmune disease. In this condition, the immune system attacks and damages the pancreatic cell, where the insulin is created. Till date, it is blurry about what exactly causes this situation. Over 10 percent of people globally have this type of diabetes.

Type 2 Diabetes:

This condition is caused when the body becomes resistant to insulin. As a result, sugar level rises in your blood.

Diabetes Symptoms

Diabetes symptoms are provoked by the rise in the blood sugar level.

The symptoms of diabetes include:

• increase in hunger
• increase in thirst
• sudden loss of weight
• constant urination and urge to urinate
• blurry and unclear vision
• excessive fatigue
• unhealing sores

Symptoms of diabetes that men usually show

Moreover, in addition to the usual symptoms that diabetic people show, men with diabetes typically have reduced sex drive, erectile dysfunction, and feeble muscle strength.

Symptoms of diabetes that women usually show

In addition to the general symptoms, women with diabetes can show symptoms like urinary tract infections, dry, and itchy skin.

Diabetes Diagnosis

Any person who showcases the symptoms of diabetes or is at a higher risk for it should get tested frequently. Women are regularly checked and examined for gestational diabetes when they are in their second or third trimesters of pregnancy.

Medical health practitioners use the following blood tests to examine and determine prediabetes and diabetes.

• üFPG, or the fasting plasma glucose test -

  This test measures blood sugar after a person fasts for eight hours.

• üThe A1C test

  This test gives a view of blood sugar levels of the previous three months.

• To detect gestational diabetes, your medical health practitioner will test the sugar level between twenty-fourth and twenty-eight weeks if your pregnancy.

Diabetes Treatment and Cost in India

Health practitioners treat diabetes with the use of multiple medications. Some of these medicines are to be consumed orally, while others are to be taken through injections.

Treatment of Type 1 Diabetes

When it comes to treating patients with type 1 diabetes, insulin places the primary role. Insulin replaces the hormones your body can't produce.

Four types of insulin are used regularly. They are segregated based on how fast they work and how long their effects last.

Here are a few:

• Rapid-acting insulin - Rapid-Acting insulin works in fifteen minutes and lasts for 3-4 hours.
• Short-acting insulin - Short-acting insulin works in thirty minutes and lasts for 6-8 hours.
• Intermediate-acting insulin - It works in 1-2 hours and lasts for 12-18 hours.
• Long-acting insulin - Long-acting insulin starts working in a few hours and lasts for twenty-four hours or longer.

The cost of treatment of diabetes in India depends on the type of diabetes, and the costs vary from hospital and hospital and also on the medicines.

Health Insurance in India

For insurance purposes, diabetes is considered as pre-existing illness, and like every other pre-existing condition, diabetes too has high waiting periods in general health insurance plans.

India is known as the “diabetes capital of the world.” In spite of that, most insurers have a waiting period of 2, 3, or even 4 years, post-diagnosis, for a diabetic. Even after the cover starts, many diabetes-related complications are excluded from policy coverage.

However, recently, many insurance companies have launched plans specifically to cover diabetes. These plans include any medical complication and emergency that arises due to diabetes, with no waiting period. These plans are a boon for the diabetics in our country but come at high premium prices.

The International Diabetes Federation has claimed that with close to 60 million diabetics in the country, diabetes is a growing concern in India. This number is expected to shoot up to 100 million by 2040. It also makes up for a huge reason to consider the seriousness of diabetes with the insurance sector.

Other Diseases in India

The fast-paced life, unbalanced life has made India a victim to befall of various diseases. The restless, ever-working, and mismanaged life in India has made India a host to multiple health conditions.

Some of those diseases are:

• Gastro-intestinal disorders
• Mental stress
• Digestive issues
• Cardiovascular diseases
• Respiratory problems
• Tumor