3rd Edition Oct 2005
Myth- Diabetes is rare in the United States.
Fact- Diabetes affects 6% of the population, which is 13 million
people. 5 million of these people do not know they have it. For
women, in the year 2002, diabetes was the #6 leading death. It
ranked behind heart disease, cancer, stroke, chronic lower
respiratory disease and Alzheimer’s. For men in the same time
frame diabetes ranked behind, heart disease, cancer,
accidents, stroke, and chronic respiratory disease. Diabetes is
also a major risk factor in developing heart disease, blindness,
kidney disease and amputations. Diabetes increased 49% from
1990 to the year 2000. It is projected that diabetes will increase
165% by the year 2050.
Myth- There are no early symptoms of diabetes.
Fact- Early signs of diabetes are missed by health
professionals because they seem harmless. The earlier you
can get the disease detected and start treatment can be
beneficial in preventing complications. Some of the warning
signs are:
frequent urination
excessive thirst
extreme hunger
unusual weight loss
increased fatigue
irritability
blurry vision
Myth- Women with diabetes shouldn’t have babies.
Fact- That was true until approximately 30 years ago. The key
is to achieve good glucose control before becoming pregnant
and making sure you maintain that control throughout the
pregnancy. Poor glucose control can lead to miscarriages or
deformities in early pregnancy. It also increases the likelihood
of having high blood pressure and having the baby
prematurely. Women with poorly controlled glucose also tend
to have very large babies, leading to delivery problems.
Diabetes complications may worsen during pregnancy and
should be carefully monitored. With good care, there isn’t any
difference between the pregnancy survival rate of those with
diabetes as opposed to those without.
By: Donna Yancy
