How can people not know they have diabetes? World wide, health care standards vary and many poor and low income families do not see a doctor and because of poor health education, may be unaware that they are symptomatic of the disease. The IDF estimates approximately 187 million people world wide do not know they have diabetes.
Diabetes Symptoms to Look For
According to the American Diabetes Association, diabetes symptoms differ depending on whether you have type 1 diabetes, the kind you're born with, or type 2 diabetes, nicknamed lifestyle diabetes.
If you suffer the following symptoms, you should seek medical treatment and testing to determine whether you have diabetes:
Type 1:
- Increased thirst
- Increased hunger
- Frequently urinating
- Unusual fatigue, irritability associated with fatigue
- Sudden weight loss
Type 2:
- type 1 diabetes symptoms
- recurring infections
- blurry vision that is not the result of a known eye condition
- slow healing cuts and bruises
- numbness or tingling in the extremities
- frequent gum, skin, or bladder infections
Patients Should Be Aware that Some Diabetes Treatments are Dangerous
If your doctor tells you that you have diabetes, you should be aware that some diabetes treatments are known to be dangerous. For example, the type 2 diabetes treatment, Actos, is known to cause bladder cancer. In fact, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released a warning that Actos patients who took the drug for a year or longer had as much as 40% increased risk of developing bladder cancer.
Talk to your doctor about your options- lifestyle and medications available to aid you. Be aware that in some cases, treatments of these diseases could cause other problems you never anticipated. If your diabetes treatment injures you, please consult a skilled personal injury and product liability attorney to preserve your rights. You could be entitled to compensation for these injuries.
