Page 16 - Quest magazine 40

Diabetes Awareness

n Wednesday, November 9th 2022, with obesity, has led to younger children con-
the staff of our Auchenskeoch Branch tracting the disease. Additionally, there has been
were treated to an informative session an evolution of the disease, due to changing eat-
Oabout Diabetes Awareness by District ing habits.
Health Nurse Mr Ricardo Kevin Warner. This
public information campaign on Diabetes man- Gestational - Mainly due to the hormonal chang-
agement can give us the information we need to es that occur during pregnancy.
safeguard and improve our health.
Listed below are primarily the signs, symptoms,
Diabetes – What do we know about it? complications and risk factors of Type 1 and
Type 2 Diabetes.
Diabetes or Diabetes Mellitus – A condition that
occurs when the body is unable to use glucose Signs & Symptoms:-
properly. As a result, people with diabetes have
HEALTH AND WELLNESS abnormally high levels of glucose in their blood. trate issues)
Frequent urination (Can be confused with pros-
Results strongly suggest that diabetic foot sepsis
Excessive thirst
is responsible for the high amputation rate, not
only in Trinidad & Tobago, but the wider Carib-
bean region. Unexplained/unintended weight loss
Extreme hunger

Sudden vision changes (Blurred vision)
Types of Diabetes (Most common types):-
Tingling/Numbness in hands/feet
Type 1 - This was once known as juvenile diabe-
tes. Firstly, it is an autoimmune condition, which Feeling very tired most of the time
is commonly diagnosed in children and teenag-
ers. Genetics, and some viruses, may cause Type Very dry skin
1 diabetes.
Sores that are slow to heal
Type 2 - A lifestyle disease. This has signifi-
cantly increased in the in the last 10 years. Even More infections than usual, For example, Urinary
though the disease is more common in older Track Infection
adults, the increase in the number of children

16 • Quest 40 July/Dec 2022 •