Risk of diabetes

Recognize the risk of diabetes early!

Type 2 diabetes is a dangerous and insidious epidemic. According to the WHO, around 8 million people in Germany suffered from diabetes in 2006. The number of sick people is steadily increasing! According to Prof. Hauner (Technical University of Munich), the number of diabetics increased by 54% in the short period from 1988 to 2004.

More and more young people are affected. The very high number of unreported cases is also alarming. According to calculations by Prof. Hauner, “around 10 percent of all Germans, this corresponds to around 8 million people, are likely to suffer from diabetes mellitus.” (Hans Hauner: Diabetes epidemic and unreported numbers. In: German Health Report Diabetes 2003, p. 8).

Every third person in Germany is at risk

According to the KORA study from the Augsburg region, the number of diagnosed cases in the 55 to 74 age group is almost as high as the number of cases that have not yet been discovered by the doctor. Another dramatic result of this study showed that “16 percent also have an early disturbance of the sugar metabolism (increased fasting blood sugar, increased 2-hour value in the sugar stress test), which is now referred to as prediabetes and which may quickly develop into diabetes requiring treatment 40 percent of all people at this age have a more or less pronounced carbohydrate metabolism disorder. ” (Hans Hauner: Diabetes epidemic and unreported numbers. In: German Health Report Diabetes 2008, p. 9).

According to American studies, the risk of diabetes mellitus occurring in a person for a lifetime is 35%. In the German Health Report 2008, Prof. Hanue from the Else Kröner Fresenius Center for Nutritional Medicine at the Technical University of Munich assumes that

Every third person in Germany will develop this disease in the course of their life.

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Prediabetes is often not taken seriously

Type 2 diabetes is treacherous because the sick have no tangible symptoms for years. The disease – often played down as a disease of affluence – causes a serious disruption of the insulin balance. Diabetes mellitus is creeping up and is often recognized far too late. Too often, prediabetes is not taken seriously, and irreversible damage and severe blood vessel disease gradually develop. Circulatory disorders, amputations, blindness, kidney failure, colon cancer and a wide range of cardiovascular diseases are not uncommon as a result.
According to the WHO (World Health Organization), a patient has an abnormal blood sugar value and can be classified as pre-diabetic if he has a blood sugar concentration of 108 mg / dl in a fasting blood sugar test! Due to their low sensitivity, conventional blood sugar urine test strips only respond from a glucose concentration of approx. 180 mg / dl.

Early diagnosis by means of a standardized fasting blood sugar test can thus enable an important time advantage of approx. 5-8 years. Important time to postpone diet and exercise changes to prevent the onset of diabetes.

Symptoms difficult to identify

Recognizing and correctly interpreting symptoms is difficult. Even doctors are often unsure. Patients often only consult a doctor if accompanying symptoms such as tiredness, weakness, constant feeling of hunger, weight gain and depressed mood have persisted for a long time and organic disorders have occurred.

Avoid irreparable damage

Many type 2 diabetics have had no tangible symptoms for years. In contrast to type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes is practically never associated with weight loss and only rarely with increased urination and a feeling of thirst. In the pronounced stage of type 2 diabetics, patients quickly develop diffuse, unspecific symptoms such as tiredness, weakness, constant feeling of hunger, weight gain or a depressed mood. Type 2 diabetics do not develop full-screen symptoms for a long time, often only notice diabetes mellitus when it is too late and consequential damage is almost inevitable.

That is why it is important to determine elevated values early on and to counteract them in a targeted manner. This is the only way to prevent irreparable damage to the vessels in good time.

Risk of diabetes

Recognize the risk of diabetes early!

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