Diabetes: an Epidemic

Diabetes is a hot topic right now, it seems like everywhere we go we see and hear about the epidemic of Diabetes our country and increasingly the rest of the world is facing, and with good reason. As a race we are in a state of crisis while Diabetes is not the only problem that threatens our existence it is a pervasive problem that if unchecked will help to destroy us. This may sound like an over-the-top scare tactic and to that I say if you are scared, good… you should be. Also, I say this because I believe it to be true in the center of my being I believe as a human race we are facing the very real probability of our own extinction if we do not change the path we are on.

The American Diabetes Association reports that as of 2013:

• Nearly 26 million children and adults in the United States have diabetes 
• 79 million Amercians have prediabetes 
• 1.9 million Americans are diagnosed with diabetes every year 
• Nearly 10% of the entire US population has diabetes, including over 25% of seniors 
• As many as 1 in 3 Amercican adults will have diabetes in 2050 if present trends continue 
• The economic cost of diagnosed diabetes in the US is $245 billion per year 

So what can we do right now to help solve this epidemic and bring peace and vitality to our lives? We can start with educating ourselves about his disease. You do not have to be obese to develop type 2 diabetes so believing that you are in the clear because you are not over weight is a mistake. We need to come together as a community and help each other heal. Everyone needs to educate themselves about this disease and then pass that knowledge on to their familes, friends and neighbors.

This post is the first in a series of posts about Diabetes, today we will learn the definitions, signs and symptoms of Prediabetes and Type 2 Diabetes.

Type 2 Diabtes: 

Is a disease of the enodocrine system, once known as adult-onset or noninsulin-dependent diabetes, is a chronic condition that affects the way your body metabolizes sugar (glucose).

With type 2 diabetes, your body either resists the effects of insulin — a hormone that regulates the movement of sugar into your cells — or doesn't produce enough insulin to maintain a normal glucose level. Untreated, type 2 diabetes can be life-threatening. 

Common Symptoms of Type 2 Diabtes:

• Urinating often 
• Feeling very thirsty 
• Feeling very hungry - even though you are eating 
• Extreme fatigue 
• Blurry vision 
• Cuts/bruises that are slow to heal 
• Tingling, pain, or numbness in the hands/feet 

Prediabetes: 

People with prediabetes have glucose levels that are higher than normal but not high enough yet to indicate diabetes. The condition used to be called borderline diabetes. Most people with prediabetes don't have symptoms, but they are considered to be at high risk of developing heart disease.

With prediabetes, the subtle balance between glucose and insulin has been thrown off. The pancreas may not be able to produce enough insulin after a meal to "clear" the incoming glucose from the blood. Or cells may be insulin resistant. When cells are insulin resistant, they won't allow the insulin to escort glucose from the bloodstream into them. Too much glucose in the blood is also called high blood sugar or hyperglycemia. A low blood sugar level is called hypoglycemia.

If you have prediabetes, you're at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes as well as the serious medical problems associated with diabetes, including heart disease and stroke. With prediabetes, you are at a 50% higher risk of heart disease and stroke than someone who does not have prediabetes.

There are roughly 313.9 million people in America and 79 million of them have prediabetes, that 25% of the population with a condition that for most of them has no symptoms. They have no idea how close they are to having a disease that will kill them if it goes unchecked.

Moving Forward

I believe in prevention and I also believe in addressing the cause so that we may heal instead of just treating the symptoms and then limping through life in a miserable existence of pain and immobility. The purpose of my series on Diabetes is to help you makes choices that will heal you at the source and allow you to realize your authentic life full of vitality and love. In the next post I will write about what insulin is why we need it and what is happening when our bodies become resistant to it.


Wishing you love and life,

Alicia Cubbage – Health Coach