Surabaya – Young age is a time when someone can try different interesting and delicious foods or drinks without special restrictions. However, recently the social media has been filled with stories about teenagers who suffer from diabetes because of their lifestyle.
In general, an older group is familiar with diabetes. However, over time, diabetes attacks the younger age group. Changes in lifestyle and increased cases of obesity among young people make diabetes a major threat to the younger generation.
The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) noted that in 2021, there will be approximately 537 million diabetes sufferers in the world aged 20-79 years. To prevent it from an early age, let’s look at the characteristics of diabetes and how to prevent it below.
What is diabetes?
Cited from the website of the Ministry of Health, diabetes is a chronic disease in the form of a metabolic disorder characterized by higher and higher sugar levels than normal limits. The cause of the increase in blood sugar is the basis for the accumulation of types of diabetes mellitus.
Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic diseases that are characterized by high levels of sugar (glucose) due to inhibition of insulin production by the pancreas or insulin use by the body. Diabetes can be caused by a number of factors.
Such as family history factors, insulin resistance for obese bodies, pancreas that does not produce enough insulin, poor lifestyle, and triggers for the appearance of other diseases.
Features of diabetes
Diabetes mellitus is divided into several types, namely type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, and gestational type diabetes mellitus. The following are the characteristics of diabetes based on the type.
1. Characteristics of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus
Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body cannot produce enough insulin, so that the glucose or sugar that is eaten cannot be processed. In general, young people from childhood or adolescence as well as adults experience type 1 diabetes, which is characterized by several characteristics, including the following.
- Increased frequency of urination
- Often feel thirsty
- Thirsty skin and dry mouth
- Lose weight
- Tired
- Blurred vision
- Other symptoms include nausea, stomach pain and vomiting
2. Characteristics of type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes is a condition where the body cannot use insulin properly. In people with type 2 diabetes, symptoms usually take several years to appear.
In some cases it is found that they do not feel any symptoms. However, when they reach adulthood or old age, sufferers experience only symptoms. The following are the characteristics of people with type 2 diabetes.
- Increased urination at night
- Increased thirst
- Tired
- Losing weight which is increasingly terrible
- Itching around the genitals caused by a fungal infection
- Slow wound healing process
- Eyes feel dry
3. Features of Gestational Diabetes
Gestational diabetes can usually occur during pregnancy. People with gestational diabetes usually do not show significant symptoms. However, when the pregnancy period enters the 24th to 28th week, the doctor will check if there are signs of diabetes in the pregnant mother.
How to prevent diabetes at a young age
To reduce the risk of diabetes, there are several ways to prevent it that can be done early. Reporting from the Ministry of Health website, here are ways to prevent the risk of diabetes at a young age.
- Maintain an ideal body weight to avoid obesity.
- Implement a healthy diet by eating foods that contain complete and balanced nutrients including carbohydrates, protein, fiber, good fats, vitamins and minerals.
- Keep food portions so that the calories that enter the body are not excessive.
- Exercise regularly by doing physical activity for at least 30 minutes every day.
- Stop smoking, because the nicotine content in cigarettes can damage pancreatic cells that work to produce insulin, thus increasing the risk of diabetes.
- Drink more water regularly and reduce sugary drinks.
- Manage stress well.
- Check your blood sugar regularly to monitor blood sugar levels and detect diabetes early.
This is complete information about the characteristics of diabetes that young people should be aware of and how to prevent it. Hope it’s useful!
This article was written by An Nisa Maulidiyah, an Independent Campus Certification internship partner at detikcom.
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2024-05-07 10:00:12
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