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Tell me the symptoms of diabetes - is a
question often asked a relative, or friend is diagnosed with
diabetes? Perhaps you are wondering if you are also at risk of
developing the condition. Well, let me ask you some questions.
Do you like to eat sweets a lot? Are you fond of drinking soda
everyday? If you answered ‘yes’ to at least one of these
questions, then chances are you are likely to develop
diabetes.
It has been often mentioned in the television shows, health
magazines, health books and internet that diabetes is a chronic
systemic disease wherein there is an insufficient supply of
insulin in the body, or the body has a lessened ability to make
use of insulin. The common risk factors for this disease are
genes and dietary intake. If one of your relatives, or
ancestors, has been diagnosed with diabetes, there’s a big
possibility that you might be, too, at some point in time. If
you are the kind of person who loves to eat sweets and fat rich
foods, then you are not exempted from the clutches of this
deadly disease. I say ‘deadly’ since a lot of diabetics die not
because of old age but because of aggravated complications of
the disease.
If by now you are thinking, “Well, tell me the symptoms of
diabetes”, then read on. There are three classic symptoms, or
manifestations, of diabetes. Take note that these symptoms are
indicative of the disease only, not definitive.
The three classic symptoms are: polyuria, polydipsia and
polyphagia. If you are adept with the English language, you’d
know that the term “poly” means “many” or “numerous” or
“increase”. This should give you a pretty good idea of the
meaning of these words, but we will examine each one more
closely
Polyuria pertains to increased frequency in urination. To
differentiate between polyuria and that of normal urinary
frequency, compare your previous urinary frequency to your
current pattern of urination. For example, if previously you
urinated once every hour, and now you have been urinating say
4-5 times per hour, then you could have polyuria and possibly
diabetes.
Polydipsia on the other hand means increased in fluid intake
due to increased thirst. To connect what’s happening, since you
are constantly letting out fluid in polyuria, then it’s no
surprise that your body will compensate and tell you that you
need more water. It makes sense, right? So an increase in
thirst is also a common indicator of diabetes.
When the disease progresses further, polyphagia, or increase in
hunger and food intake, can occur. To differentiate between
healthy appetite and this manifestation, check your weight
regularly. If you have been eating a lot lately but losing
weight, then there is a good chance, my friend, that you could
have polyphagia.
If you have any of these three symptoms, don’t despair. Go to
your doctor and have yourself examined. He will run some blood
and urine tests on you to come up with a correct diagnosis.
Tthese three classic symptoms, otherwise known as the three
P’s, could be due to many things and a doctor is in the best
position to diagnose the cause of your symptoms. Maybe you are
just under stress and it’s your body’s way of coping. There’s
no use in getting worried over something when it could turn out
to be nothing. While these are common symptoms of diabetes,
they are also common to other conditions.
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