Diabetes is not only an epidemic among many American adults, it’s also becoming increasingly common and on the rise in teenagers. Diabetes is caused when the body’s ability to handle glucose is compromised leaving it unable to properly regulate it’s sugar levels. But are there any warning signs indicating that you might have diabetes?
There are quite a few diabetes symtoms including fatigue, numbness of the limbs such as the feet and hands, blurry vision, and more. But one of the earliest symptoms is a need for frequent urination accompanied by constant thirst.
Frequent urination and thirst can be caused by many things, but it is also a symptom of type 2 diabetes. In fact, many times diabetes is first noticed in children when they suddenly begin bedwetting out of the blue. The combination of the need to urinate and thirst create a vicious cycle. Here’s how it works.
Diabetes is an excess of sugar in the blood, and when someone’s blood sugar level becomes extremely elevated the body needs to get rid of some of it. In a normal person, the body gets rid of excess glucose by eliminating it through the urine. In order to make the urine, however, the body needs water – so it makes the person thirsty. The thirst induces them to drink more liquids such as water or juice. Of course, drinking more liquids increases the body’s need to urinate and eliminate some of the excess glucose from the body. This excessive urination, however, also drains essential water from the body, leading to dehydration which causes the person to become thirsty again. The cycle then repeats.
Someone not having diabetes will likely never go through this cycle. She will become thirsty, drink water or a beverage to quench the thirst, and go on about her everyday business. Many people that have diabetes, however, never notice the cycle as it is gradual. And before too long they perceive their thirst and urination needs as natural.
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