Have you ever wondered what your risk of Diabetes is? If not, it might be worth thinking about it.
“Why?”…I hear you ask.
Type 2 Diabetes is becoming ever more prevalent in the Western World, with statistics showing that 1 person was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes every 2 minutes in the UK in 2019.
Yes, one every 2 minutes!
Does that statistic shock you? It should!
4.7 million people in the UK have already been diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. This is double the figure from just 20 years ago. In addition to that, there are thought to be another 1 million more people walking around with Type 2 Diabetes that has not yet been diagnosed. This is potentially dangerous as undiagnosed, and therefore possibly uncontrolled, Diabetes can have a huge impact on your health, with complications including problems with your sight, kidneys and feet.
In order to avoid this, try to ensure that you are aware of the common symptoms of Diabetes, so that you get them check out if necessary. This is even more important than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic with fewer people having routine blood tests or seeing their GPs with any health concerns that they might have.
Ignoring symptoms will not make them go away!
The most common symptoms of Diabetes are:
- Going to the toilet a lot, especially at night
- Being really thirsty
- Feeling more tired than usual
- Losing weight without trying to
- Genital itching or thrush
- Cuts and wounds taking longer to heal
- Blurred vision
If you don’t have those symptoms, don’t stop reading!
Not everyone with Diabetes has any symptoms and that is why knowing your risk is so important. When you know your risk you will know whether to have a blood test to check your blood glucose levels. You can then also make diet or lifestyle changes to either lower your risk or help you manage your blood glucose levels, if you do get diagnosed.
So what’s stopping you?
To make it as easy as can be, check out the ‘Diabetes Risk Quiz’ on my website.
It will only take 2 minutes and could be the most important thing you do today!
