American Diabetes Association, in one of its studies, found that almost 65 percent of people who die out of strokes or heart attacks are diabetic and that too specifically Type II diabetic. Hence it is very important for any person to know more about the diabetes and its relationship with heart disease.
When it comes to knowing diabetes and heart disease then you must know about atherosclerosis, which is nothing but fatty plaques build up in arteries. Due to plaque deposits, the passage of artery will get blocked there by the blood flow will get affected, leading to heart attack.
Diabetes and Heart Disease – How the Problem Crops up?
Diabetes is a condition where your pancreas will stop producing insulin or the produced insulin will lose its effectiveness in breaking the blood glucose to convert it into energy. The first condition is referred as Type I diabetes and the second one is called as Type II diabetes.
In both the cases the unconverted glucose will get accumulated in blood and it will start damaging the blood vessels and other organs including heart. Out of two types of diabetes, Type II is more dangerous as it can result in high cholesterol, hypertension there by indirectly affecting heart.
Diabetes and Heart Disease – How to Have an Effective Control?
As a diabetic patient, you should first learn as how to protect your heart.
The very first step should be on the lines of controlling your blood sugar and you can consult your doctor and follow his prescriptions and recommendations scrupulously. Your doctor may also suggest a special diabetic diet or prescribe insulin administration in the form of injection or pills.
You can also purchase a handy blood sugar monitoring device from the market and keep your blood sugar level checked at regular intervals and take corrective steps or remedial treatments based on results.
Besides having an effective check on your blood sugar level, you should also have an effective control over your cholesterol level and blood pressure. Though you can effectively control your high blood pressure and cholesterol through medication, a simple change in diet and a regular exercise can go a long way in helping you to control these two diseases without resorting to any medication.
A change in lifestyle, say from sedentary to an active lifestyle, and change in diet, say from fatty foods to more fresh vegetables and fruits, can really help in your endeavour to keep blood pressure and cholesterol under check.
In order to control both the diabetes and heart disease in one go, you can try reducing your body weight to a more acceptable level. A well maintained body mass index could really help you in tackling the diabetes and heart disease problem. Even if you are able to shed a very small percentage of your body weight, the same can do wonders and can remove a major stress from your heart.
As a diabetic, it is important that you consult your doctor immediately and on a regular basis there after so as to maintain your heart and body in a best possible shape.
[tags]Blood Sugar, Sedentary Lifestyle[/tags]