Understanding Diabetes: Symptoms, Causes & Long-Term Risks

Diabetes is a serious endocrine disorder that occurs when your body is no longer able to convert glucose into energy due to a lack of insulin. Symptoms of diabetes are the result of the buildup of sugar in the blood. If left untreated, diabetes can cause serious long term damage to the liver, heart and brain.

Abnormal Thirst

• One of the most characteristic symptoms of diabetes is increased thirst. This occurs as a result of glucose building up in the bloodstream and depleting fluid from other areas of the body.

Distorted Vision

• When the body relocates fluid from other areas of the body, it often saps fluid solution from the eyes, making blurry or distorted vision a symptom of diabetes.

Abnormal Hunger

• Another classic symptom of diabetes is increased hunger. Since the body is unable to convert the glucose into energy, it believes it is running low on sustenance and calls for more.

Unusual Fatigue

• Increased exhaustion is a symptom of diabetes due to the cell's inability to receive new supplies of energy.

Abnormal Weight Loss

• When the body is unable to procure energy from the food it is ingesting, it will begin to process fat reserves for energy, resulting in weight loss.