How to treat diabetes
10 December, 2018
Diabetes is a chronic disorder in which the body does not produce or use insulin effectively. It is not curable for most people, but treatments include medication, lifestyle adjustments, and management of diabetes' various complications.
The main aim of diabetes treatment is to return blood sugar to a safe threshold and reduce the risk of complications while helping a person with diabetes to resume daily function.
In this article, we look at the treatments for types 1 and 2 diabetes, as well as the importance of insulin.
People can manage some cases of type 2 diabetes with lifestyle adjustments, so we also examine the steps a person can take in the early stages of diabetes to reverse its progression.
Medications
The main medication for managing type 1 diabetes is insulin.
Insulin
People with type 1 diabetes must take insulin, as the pancreas of a person with type 1 does not produce the hormone. Supplementary insulin helps the cells in the body to absorb glucose and use energy.
A person with type 1 diabetes will need to receive insulin at several points throughout the day. Some doses of insulin will occur before or after a meal. With type 2 diabetes, insulin is not always necessary.
However, a doctor may recommend taking it at certain times, such as while pregnant or during an extended hospital admission.
Self-monitoring can help an individual decide when to take insulin.
Insulin has several different delivery methods. The most common methods include the following.
Insulin pump: This delivers small, continuous doses of insulin throughout the day.
Needle and syringe: An individual draws insulin fluid from a bottle and injects a shot. The most effective location is on the stomach, but a person can also administer a shot into the upper arm, the buttocks, or the thigh.
Some people need several shots to return blood glucose to an ideal level. Others might only require one shot.
Pen: Some insulin pens are disposable, while others offer space for a replaceable insulin cartridge. They are costlier than needles but easier to use and resemble a pen with a needle instead of a nib.
Less commonly, people might use the following to administer insulin:
Inhaler: Some types of insulin can be breathed in as a powder from an inhaler device. Inhaled insulin can reach the blood faster than other types. However, it is only suitable for adults who have type 1 or type 2 diabetes.
Jet injector: This method delivers a fine, high-pressure spray into the skin instead of a needle injection.
Injection port: This contains a short tube that the person who needs insulin slots just beneath the skin. They would then inject insulin into the port with a pen or needle and syringe and fit a replacement every few days. An injection port gets around having to puncture the skin every day.
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