The connection between diabetes, heart disease

By Cami Wells

Diabetes is a serious condition that happens when your body can’t make enough of a hormone called insulin or can’t properly use the insulin it has. Insulin helps your body digest sugars that come from what you eat and drink. Without enough insulin, sugar builds up in your blood. Over time, that sugar buildup damages your nerves, blood vessels, heart, and kidneys.

More than 29 million Americans have diabetes, or about 1 of every 11 people. About 8 million of them don’t know they have diabetes. Another 86 million — more than 1 in 3 Americans older than 20 — have prediabetes, a condition in which a person’s blood sugar is high, but not yet high enough to trigger diabetes. Most people with diabetes have type 2 diabetes. Adults with type 2 diabetes are about twice as likely to die from heart disease as adults who do not have diabetes. Here are a few more surprising facts about diabetes:
-- Women with diabetes have a 40 percent greater risk of developing heart disease and a 25 percent greater risk of stroke than men with diabetes do. Experts aren’t sure why the risk is so much greater in women with diabetes than in men with diabetes. Women’s biology may play a role: Women usually have more body fat, which can put them at greater risk for heart disease and stroke.

-- Diabetes is the seventh leading killer of Americans. In 2014, more than 76,000 people in the United States died from diabetes. But diabetes often contributes to deaths from other causes, including heart disease, the leading killer of Americans.

-- Type 2 diabetes among young people is on the rise. So is obesity. Type 2 diabetes was once thought to be a condition that developed only in older adults. Now, because obesity is common at all ages, type 2 diabetes is becoming a problem for people of all ages.
Making healthy lifestyle changes can help you prevent or control diabetes and lower your chances of getting heart disease and stroke. Take the following steps to lower your risk of diabetes:

-- Stay physically active. Physical activity helps keeps your blood vessels healthy and your weight under control.

-- Choose healthy foods. Choose fiber-rich foods, such as fresh vegetables, fruits, and whole grains.

-- Reach a healthy weight. Research shows that losing even a small amount of weight by exercising and making healthy eating choices can prevent or delay type 2 diabetes in people with high risk. Talk to your doctor about what a healthy weight is for you.

-- Quit smoking. If you have diabetes and use tobacco, your risk of heart and blood vessel problems is even greater. Smoking raises your blood sugar, cholesterol, and blood pressure.

-- Take your medicine as directed. It is important that you take any medicine you have been prescribed for your diabetes, such as medicine to control your blood sugar, as directed. You may also need to take medicine for related conditions, such as high blood pressure or high cholesterol.

http://www.theindependent.com/life/food/the-connection-between-diabetes-heart-disease/article_045abb4a-bd91-11e6-9eb7-2f561e81831f.html