Diabetes and Heart Disease

Thursday, July 21, 2011
What is diabetes?. Your body changes most of the food you eat into a form of sugar called glucose. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas that allows glucose to enter every cell of your body to be used as an energy source.

Diabetes is a disease that occurs when a person's body does not produce enough insulin or can not use insulin properly. When you have diabetes, sugar accumulates in the blood instead of moving into the cells. Too much sugar in the blood can cause serious health problems, including heart disease and nerve damage and kidney.

There are two types of diabetes. Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body does not produce any insulin. In type 2 diabetes the body does not produce enough insulin or the cells ignore the insulin. Nearly 95% of people diagnosed with diabetes have type 2 diabetes.

What does the diabetes to heart disease?
People with diabetes are more likely to give them heart disease. When you have diabetes your blood sugar in the blood is often much higher than it should be. Too much sugar in the blood can cause damage to many parts of the body, including blood vessels. Some habits in lifestyles can also increase the risk of heart disease. Here are some things written that you can do to lower your risk:

1. Keep your level of blood sugar under control.
Controlling your blood sugar in the blood decrease your risk of heart disease. Many people with diabetes check their blood sugar level every day to make sure that your medications and insulin or only one of these, and diet and exercise, are working to keep the level of blood sugar within a normal range .

2. Losing weight and keeping it off.
Diabetes, being overweight and heart disease are often associated. Losing weight helps with many health problems. For example, if you have been told that your blood pressure is too high, losing weight can get off. If your blood sugar in the blood has been difficult to control, losing weight can help.

Losing weight is important if you have too much extra weight around the waist and abdomen. People who tend to have more weight around the waist have a higher risk of heart disease than those people who have it in the hips or thighs.

You do not have to cut too much weight to decrease your risk of heart disease. Losing even 10 pounds (4.53 kg) can help.

3. Reduce your cholesterol
Cholesterol is a waxy substance your body uses to protect nerves, make cell tissues and produce certain hormones. All the cholesterol your body needs is made in your liver. Cholesterol in the foods you eat, such as eggs, meat and dairy products is additional. Too much cholesterol in your blood can cover his arteries.

Chances are you've heard of "good" cholesterol and "bad" cholesterol. The "bad" cholesterol, or LDL cholesterol, which is the abbreviation for low density lipoprotein, can clog your arteries and cause heart disease. The "good" cholesterol or HDL cholesterol, which is the abbreviation for high-density lipoprotein carries cholesterol is not necessary outside of the body tissues. This decreases your risk of heart disease.

If your doctor tells him that his cholesterol level is too high, what can you do about it? Help to lose weight and eat a healthy diet.

You should limit the amount of fatty and high cholesterol you eat. There are many cookbooks available that contain recipes that are low in fat, low cholesterol, and with suggestions for meals. If you need help determining how to change your diet, your doctor may shall command where a nutritionist (dietitian). A dietitian has special training in planning healthy diets.

If the diet you are not only lowers your cholesterol, the cholesterol-lowering medications can help in that regard. You and your doctor can talk about these medicines. The drug is best for you depends on your special needs and medical condition.

4. Increase your physical activity.
Along with diet, exercise is very important for people with diabetes q ue. Diet and exercise work together to help your body function properly. If you have changed your diet to lose weight, exercise can help you lose weight faster.

You and your doctor can plan exercises that are useful and not dangerous. You do not need a gym or expensive equipment to get good exercise. The Brisk walking is great exercise. Climbing stairs instead of taking the elevator (lift) is another good thing to do.

Just as eating a healthy diet, exercise will also help to maintain their normal blood sugar and reduce your risk of heart disease.

5. Control your blood pressure
People with diabetes often also have what your blood pressure (blood) high. Blood pressure (blood) is a high-very high risk factor for stroke. This also increases your risk of heart disease and liver disease.

The same changes in lifestyle to control levels of blood sugar and decrease your risk of heart disease may also keep your blood pressure at levels that are safe. Weight loss and exercise are important. The more weight you lose more you lower your blood pressure. It is also important not to consume too much alcohol.

If your blood pressure does not come down enough with diet and exercise, your doctor may have you take medicines that will help.

6. If you smoke, quit.
Smoking is bad for everyone but it's even worse for people with diabetes because it damages blood vessels. If you have diabetes and smoke, you double your risk of getting heart disease. Worse, if you keep smoking while trying to reduce other risks (such as losing extra weight) you may not exercise as much and probably will not lose the weight you need.

Remember:
Diabetes and heart disease are related. Diabetes, being overweight and high blood pressure are related. Diet and exercise are good ways to control your blood sugar in the blood, lower blood pressure and reduce your risk of getting heart disease. When diet and exercise do not help enough, medicines can help control your blood sugar levels in the blood, reduce cholesterol and control blood pressure. You can do much to help through their own efforts.

Where I can get more information?
The American Diabetes Association (American Diabetes Association) can help you choose the right foods, plan healthy meals and good nutrition while maintaining low consumption of calories.

American Heart Association (American Heart Association) is a good source for diets that are low in fat and cholesterol.

Source: http://familydoctor.org