The numbers are pretty crazy. More than 100 million Americans now have either prediabetes or diabetes.

That means there are a lot of Americans out there living with elevated blood sugar, which can increase your risk for a number of different serious health issues. That’s why our team at AFC Urgent Care Powdersville wants to take a few minutes today to shed some light on the condition.

What Is Diabetes?

As we briefly mentioned above, diabetes means that your blood sugar—or blood glucose—is too high. There are two main types of diabetes, Type 1 and Type 2.

If you have Type 1 diabetes, your body doesn’t produce the insulin needed to use glucose. If you have Type 2 diabetes, your body either doesn’t make insulin well or it doesn’t use it well. In both cases, too much glucose in the blood can eventually damage all parts of your body, including the eyes and nerves.

Symptoms of Diabetes

• Frequent urination
• Excessive thirst
• Excessive hunger
• Extreme fatigue
• Blurry vision
• Slow-healing cuts and wounds

Am I at Risk for Developing Diabetes?

Anyone can develop diabetes. It affects people of all ages and races. But it’s important to know your risk factors so you can take steps to mitigate them.

Practicing healthy lifestyle habits, such as getting plenty of exercise and eating a healthy diet, can help lower or eliminate many risk factors.

Risk Factors of Diabetes

• Being overweight or obese
• Living a sedentary lifestyle
• Having a family history of diabetes
• Having had gestational diabetes
• Having high blood pressure
• Having low levels of HDL (good) cholesterol
• Being of advanced age
• Being of African American, American Indian or Hispanic ethnicity

Feeling under the weather? Schedule an AFC TeleCare appointment with AFC Urgent Care Powdersville today to get the care you need from the comfort of home.