Diabetes is caused when the blood glucose (blood sugar) level is too high & it affects proper functioning of the body. The blood sugar levels is maintained by insulin which is hormone produced by pancreas.
Type 1 diabetes is caused when body doesn’t produce any insulin at all, while type 2 diabetes is caused when body doesn’t produce sufficient insulin to control your blood sugar.
Diabetes is a progressive diseases and usually worsens with age. The consequences of uncontrolled diabetes can be visible on the entire body & its organs – heart, foot, skin, kidneys, eyes, sexual organs, nervous system and many more.
The table below highlights the detrimental effect of diabetes on different parts of the body.
| Conditions | Affected areas |
| Cardiovascular Disease | Coronary arterial disease |
| Angina (Chest Pain) | |
| Heart Attack | |
| Stroke | |
| Atherosclerosis (Narrowing of arteries) | |
| Nerve Damage | Capillary (Tiny Blood Vessels) wall injury |
| Tingling Numbness | |
| Burning sensation with pain at he tips of the toes and fingers | |
| Paresthesia (Loss of sensation of touch) | |
| Nausea (Damage to the nerves related to Digestion) | |
| Vomiting (Damage to the nerves related to Digestion) | |
| Diarrhea (Damage to the nerves related to Digestion) | |
| Constipation (Damage to the nerves related to Digestion) | |
| Nephropathy (Kidney Damage) | Glomeruli Damage (Damage of filtering system) |
| Kidney Failure | |
| Irreversible end stage kidney disease | |
| Dialysis dependency | |
| Kidney Transplant | |
| Retinopathy (Eye Damage) | Diabetic Retinopathy (Damage of Retinal Blood vessels) |
| Potential Blindness | |
| Cataracts | |
| Glaucoma | |
| Diabetic Gangrenes | Reuced Blood flow to the feet |
| Simple wounds get infected | |
| Poor Healing of injuries | |
| Amputation of Toe/Foot/Leg | |
| Skin Problems | Bacterial Infections |
| Fungal Infections | |
| Alzheimers Disease | Increased risk of Type 2 diabetes |
| Gestational Diabetes | Macrosomia (Excess Growth of the Baby) |
| Hypoglycemia in the new borns | |
| Type II Diabetes later in the life | |
| Intra Unterine Demise of the Baby or Shortly after birth | |
| Preeclampsia | High Blood Pressure |
| Excess protein in the urine | |
| Swelling in the legs and feet | |
| Recurrent Gestational Diabetes | Increased risk of Type 2 diabetes |