There are a few different types of diabetes, and all of them hamper the body’s abilities to produce insulin. Knowing the difference between them can help you prevent the disease if you have certain risk factors. The knowledgeable endocrinologists at Salinas Valley Medical Clinic can help you fight the disease, or manage it once you have been diagnosed.
This is not an official class of diabetes— it is a term applied to patients with an increased risk of the disease who can still prevent it. If you have exceedingly high levels of blood sugar, a doctor may warn that you are prediabetic. To prevent advancing into Type 2 diabetes, start exercising for 30 minutes a day and restricting your diet to smaller serving sizes with less sugar and carbs.
Check back with your doctor frequently for an update on your status. The silver lining of this diagnosis is that once you’ve been cleared of risk, you should have already developed habits for a healthier lifestyle.
In this less common form of diabetes, your body completely stop producing insulin. While individuals with Type 2 diabetes can avoid insulin shots with exercise and healthy habits, Type 1 diabetes patients have no choice but to take insulin injections every day.
This diabetes is especially common in children and adolescents, and to date no one knows what causes it. For reasons unknown, the body’s own immune system turns on the pancreas and starts attacking it, preventing it from doing its job. Thankfully, it is still very possible to manage this form of diabetes with medication, exercise and diet.
Usually, it is a combination of the above issues that results in diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is very manageable, and with a healthy lifestyle, patients may not even require insulin injections on a daily basis. Speak with your doctor about what you can do to keep your diabetes under control.
This is a temporary form of diabetes that sometimes affects pregnant women. The pancreas can have a difficult time adjusting to the changes in your body during pregnancy and fails to produce sufficient insulin, causing blood sugar levels to spike. This can hurt both you and your baby, so immediate care is recommended. Thankfully, while pregnant you should already be making frequent trips to the doctor, who can test your blood sugar levels and warn you of a problem before it becomes serious.
Since your ability to exercise is hampered by pregnancy, you will need to work with your doctor on a diet and treatment plan. You can reduce your risk of developing gestational diabetes by losing weight and performing rigorous exercise before pregnancy. Be aware that if you had gestational diabetes, you are at an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life.
There are 2 other rare forms of diabetes called monogenic diabetes and cystic fibrosis-related diabetes.
Monogenic diabetes – This accounts for about 5% of all diabetes cases. Monogenic diabetes is the result of a rare mutation in a single gene. Symptoms can be very similar to other types of diabetes, and a genetic test can determine if it is monogenic diabetes. Determining this is important, as there are special medications that are especially effective at treating monogenic diabetes.
Cystic Fibrosis-related Diabetes (CFRD) – People with cystic fibrosis can sometimes develop diabetes as a side effect of the condition. Cystic fibrosis causes thick mucus to develop in the body, this substance can damage the pancreas. The symptoms of CFRD are similar to Type 2 diabetes, and treatment will require insulin injections. Because of the unique nature of this form of diabetes, treatment usually requires assistance from a cystic fibrosis specialist.
Visit the Salinas Valley Medical Clinic endocrinology center for education and treatment on diabetes.