Diabetes Lasts a Lifetime: Effective Management Methods
While childhood diabetes becomes apparent in the adolescent years, type 2 diabetes primarily impacts middle-aged and elderly adults. After diagnosis, patients must learn to manage this illness for the remainder of their lives. MSN online students at the University of Arizona College of Nursing and other colleges now have access to an infographic that details management information of the disease, as well as some eye-opening related statistics. Diabetes is now the eighth-major cause of death worldwide, meaning that many people living with the disease will eventually succumb to it. It doesn’t have to be this way.
The Main Causes of Diabetes
While having family members who also suffer from the condition increases your risk factor of getting it yourself, age and obesity are the main factors. Although managing diabetes continues to be a challenge for people in the medical community as well as those diagnosed with the disease themselves, new and useful information continues to become readily available. Shopping for foods that are beneficial for diabetics is no longer a challenge, and medical equipment for home use can easily be found at drug stores. Living with diabetes requires a long term plan for management.
The sad thing is that type 2 is completely preventable in 90-95% of cases. Most people who are at risk of the condition can lower their risk simply by making some lifestyle changes. Improving your diet by ditching the carbs for whole grains, getting more exercise, and in some cases making use of insulin injections, can help prevent the disease from occurring. With diabetes significantly on the rise, public health officials need to be more proactive in explaining the risk factors to people, and showing them how they can adapt their lives to prevent or mitigate the disease.
The referenced infographic was made by the University of Arizona College of Nursing division.
