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Health & Fitness

Diabetes – Let's Get Serious

More and more people are acquiring type II (adult onset) Diabetes mellitus. This is the disease that causes your blood sugar levels to rise and fall abnormally.

 

More and more people are acquiring type II (adult onset) Diabetes mellitus.  This is the disease that causes your blood sugar levels to rise and fall abnormally.  Most of those diagnosed with Diabetes have type II, the non-insulin dependent type.  This means that it can be controlled with medication, diet and exercise in most cases.  Let’s think about that statement some more.  This is a disease that, in most cases, you can control through healthy eating and exercise.  Yet, Diabetes is often left uncontrolled.

Generally the onset of type II Diabetes is slow and symptoms are more mild than Juvenile/ Type I Diabetes.  It usually begins as insulin resistance, a disorder in which the cells do not use insulin properly, leading to elevated blood glucose levels.  Insulin resistance is caused in part by genetics, but also by excess weight, especially in the abdomen.  Also associated with “insulin resistance syndrome” is increased LDL (bad) blood cholesterol levels, decreased HDL (good) cholesterol levels, increased blood triglyceride (fat) levels, and increased blood pressure, putting the heart at risk, too.  In the early stages of excess glucose building up in the bloodstream, the person is in a state called "Pre-diabetes."  Most people with pre-diabetes develop type II diabetes within 10 years, unless they lose weight and increase their level of physical activity. 

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Type 2 diabetes is associated with older age, obesity and high-fat diet, genetics, history of gestational diabetes, physical inactivity, stress, and race/ethnicity.  Some of these risk factors are not modifiable, but many are.  Recent dramatic increases of this disease indicate that the modifiable lifestyle factors may be particularly important in triggering the genetic elements that cause this type of Diabetes.  Regardless of the cause, in every case, you have the ability to control the problems associated with the disease.

Type 2 diabetes is increasingly being diagnosed in children and adolescents due to the obesity epidemic of today. Parents please help your children stay healthy by keeping them active on a daily basis and by eating healthy foods.  By following these simple rules, you have the power to prevent diseases like Type II Diabetes in your children.  

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If you or a loved one develops Diabetes, controlling your blood sugar levels is crucial.  It is the peaks and valleys associated with the rise and fall of blood sugar levels that cause the secondary and more severe problems of Diabetes like blindness, non-healing infections leading to amputation, neuropathy and death.  

All types of Diabetes need to be taken seriously.  I had the unfortunate experience of watching my father’s life end too early due to the complications of uncontrolled Type I Diabetes.  On almost a daily basis, I meet more people with Type II Diabetes and I know it would not be this prevalent if people would actively change their poor eating habits and incorporate regular exercise into their routines.  Is that really asking too much?

Conshohocken Physical Therapy is not an ordinary Physical Therapy clinic. We believe in changing your life. We are driven by the desire to make a positive impact, both personally and therapeutically, on every person who enters our office.

You will experience pain relief, improved motion and a greater quality of life. Our approach is friendly, evidence-based and innovative and our Doctors of Physical Therapy have the most specialized training in treating your body.

Learn more about Conshohocken Physical Therapy by visiting us online at www.conshypt.com.

 

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