Diabetes UK show how to test feet for diabetic feet sensitivity
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If you don’t make the effort to get a handle on your type 2 diabetes, you could set yourself up for a host of complications. Diabetes can take a toll on nearly every organ in your body and if left untreated could cause irreparable damage.
If your blood glucose stays high over time, it can damage the tiny blood vessels in the back of your eyes.
“This damage can begin during prediabetes, when blood glucose is higher than normal, but not high enough for you to be diagnosed with diabetes,” says the National Institutes of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease.
The health site adds: “Damaged blood vessels may leak fluid and cause swelling.
“New, weak blood vessels may also begin to grow.
“These blood vessels can bleed into the middle part of the eye, lead to scarring, or cause dangerously high pressure inside your eye.”
Having untreated high blood sugar can lead to eye problems, some of which can cause blindness if not treated.
Eye problems caused by untreated high blood sugar include:
- Glaucoma
- Cataracts
- Diabetic retinopathy, which involves the small blood vessels in your eyes.
Diabetes is the leading cause of new vision loss among adults ages 20 to 74.
Diabetic retinopathy is a complication of diabetes, caused by high blood sugar levels damaging the back of the eye (retina).
It can cause blindness if left undiagnosed and untreated.
However, it usually takes several years for diabetic retinopathy to reach a stage where it could threaten your sight.
Diabetes is known to cause nerve damage in your ears.
Over time, high blood sugar levels can damage small blood vessels and nerves in the inner ear.
Low blood sugar over time can damage how the nerve signals travel from the inner ear to your brain.
Both types of nerve damage can lead to hearing loss.
Ways to help lower your risk of losing your vision or hearing from high blood sugar include:
- Manage your diabetes
- Monitor your blood sugar level
- Ask your doctor about a glycosylated haemoglobin test
- Keep your blood pressure and cholesterol under control
- If you smoke or use other types of tobacco, ask your doctor to help you quit
- Pay attention to vision changes.
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