Diabetes is a chronic condition that affects how the body processes blood glucose, also called blood sugar. When you have diabetes, your body either can’t make enough insulin or can’t properly use the insulin it produces. This causes a buildup of glucose in the blood, which can lead to serious health complications if left untreated.
Many people live with diabetes for years without knowing it. According to the CDC, over 7 million Americans are living with undiagnosed diabetes. This is concerning because living with untreated diabetes can damage the body over time.
Common Symptoms of Undiagnosed Diabetes
The most common symptoms of undiagnosed diabetes include:
- Frequent urination
- Increased thirst
- Fatigue
- Blurred vision
- Slow healing of cuts and wounds
- Recurrent infections
Let’s explore these top symptoms further:
Frequent Urination and Increased Thirst
Excess sugar builds up in the bloodstream when you have diabetes. The kidneys respond by flushing out the extra glucose through urine. This leads to frequent urination as the bladder fills up more quickly. You may find yourself waking up several times a night to use the bathroom.
Along with urinating more frequently, you may experience excessive thirst. Your body is trying to counteract fluid loss from high urine output. So increased thirst and more frequent urination often come hand-in-hand.
Fatigue
Feeling tired and weak for no clear reason could signal diabetes. Insulin plays an important role in helping sugar enter cells to be used for energy. When insulin is lacking, blood glucose can’t get into cells efficiently. This leaves you fatigued despite proper rest.
Blurred Vision
Uncontrolled diabetes can cause blood vessels in the eyes to swell and leak fluid. This fluid accumulation distorts light rays entering your eyes, leading to blurry vision. If left untreated, diabetic retinopathy can ultimately lead to blindness.
Slow Wound Healing
High blood sugar levels interfere with your body’s natural healing processes. Platelets, proteins, and white blood cells rely on proper blood glucose control to function well and repair damaged blood vessels. So cuts and scrapes are slow to heal in someone with undiagnosed diabetes.
Recurrent Infections
High blood sugar creates a breeding ground for infection-causing bacteria. With diabetes, white blood cells that normally fight infection also work less efficiently. This combination makes people with undiagnosed diabetes prone to multiple infections, including urinary tract infections, skin infections, and vaginal infections.
Other Possible Symptoms
In addition to the most common symptoms outlined above, other signs of undiagnosed diabetes can include:
- Unexplained weight loss
- Tingling or numbness in hands or feet
- Dark velvety skin patches (acanthosis nigricans)
- Itchy, red, swollen gums
- Groin, armpit, or neck skin infections
Unexplained Weight Loss
Sudden, unintentional weight loss is a red flag for diabetes. Despite eating the same amount, the body starts to break down fat and muscle stores for energy because blood glucose isn’t available. Losing weight without trying can be an early sign of diabetes.
Tingling or Numbness
Nerve damage (neuropathy) commonly affects people with diabetes. Excess glucose can damage and irritate nerves, especially in the hands and feet. You may feel tingling, numbness, burning, or pain. Catching nerve problems early is key to prevent permanent nerve injury.
Dark Velvety Skin Patches
Dark, velvety patches on the skin in body folds and creases can signal insulin resistance. This condition, called acanthosis nigricans, may appear on the neck, armpits, and groin. The skin changes result from insulin trying overly hard to control blood sugar levels.
Gum Problems
Swollen, reddened, tender gums that bleed easily when brushing signal gum inflammation (gingivitis). Diabetes reduces blood flow and the body’s resistance to infection. These vascular changes make gum tissues vulnerable to bacteria, leading to inflammation and infection.
Skin Infections
Bacteria and fungi thrive in the warm, moist folds of the skin. With diabetes, high blood sugar reduces immune function and wound healing. This makes people more susceptible to skin infections in areas like the groin, armpits, and neck. These may appear as red, itchy, or painful rashes.
When to See a Doctor
If you are experiencing potential diabetes symptoms, see your doctor promptly. Getting an accurate diagnosis and starting treatment can help prevent long-term complications of high blood sugar.
Your doctor will check for diabetes by:
- Analyzing symptoms
- Checking blood sugar levels
- Conducting an A1C test to measure average blood glucose over the past 2-3 months
Based on test results and symptom evaluation, your doctor can diagnose diabetes or prediabetes. With treatment guidance, you can get your blood sugar under control and reduce health risks.
Treating Undiagnosed Diabetes
Treatment for undiagnosed diabetes involves lowering blood glucose levels to a healthy range. Treatment options typically include:
- Following a diabetes-friendly meal plan
- Exercising regularly
- Losing excess weight
- Taking oral medications or injectable insulin
- Working with a diabetes educator
- Regular medical monitoring
Making lifestyle changes like improving your diet and increasing physical activity can go a long way for managing diabetes. If lifestyle steps aren’t enough, diabetes medications bring blood sugar levels under control.
Treatment also involves managing diabetes risk factors like high cholesterol and blood pressure. Your doctor may prescribe medications for these as well.
The key is starting treatment as soon as possible after diagnosis. Consistent blood sugar management reduces the risk of diabetes complications.
Complications Related to Undiagnosed Diabetes
The longer you live with undiagnosed or untreated diabetes, the higher the chances of developing serious complications. Consistently high blood glucose damages nerves, blood vessels, and vital organs.
Potential diabetes complications include:
- Diabetic retinopathy (eye damage)
- Kidney disease
- Nerve damage
- Skin conditions
- Foot damage, ulcers, infections
- Heart and blood vessel disease
- Hearing impairment
Eye Complications
Over time, elevated blood sugar causes changes in the small blood vessels supplying the retina. This can lead to diabetic retinopathy, resulting in:
- Blurry, fluctuating vision
- Impaired color perception
- Blind spots or floaters
- Dark or leaking blood vessels
- Retinal swelling
- Complete vision loss
Good diabetes control helps prevent retinopathy progression and vision loss.
Kidney Disease
The kidneys act as filters to remove waste from the bloodstream. Diabetes damages this filtration system. As a result, protein leaks out into the urine while waste builds up in the blood. Over time, kidney function declines. Kidney failure is possible without proper diabetes treatment.
Nerve Damage
Chronically high blood sugar injures the walls of the tiny blood vessels that nourish nerves. This can lead to tingling, weakness, pain, and numbness. Nerve damage often starts in the legs and feet. But it can spread to affect the digestive system, genitals, blood vessels, and heart.
Skin Complications
People with diabetes are prone to various skin problems including:
- Bacterial infections
- Fungal infections
- Itchy rashes
- Blisters
- Dryness and itching
Damage to blood vessels and nerves impair the skin’s ability to heal. Skin conditions can become widespread and serious without proper diabetes treatment.
Foot Damage
Nerve damage in the feet increases risk for foot ulcers and infections. Without awareness of pain from foot injuries, wounds can worsen and lead to amputation. Prevention includes daily foot inspection, proper trimming of toenails, moisture management, and well-fitted shoes.
Heart and Blood Vessel Disease
Diabetes dramatically increases risk of cardiovascular disease. Over time, elevated blood sugar damages blood vessels and nerves that control heart function. People with diabetes tend to develop artery-clogging deposits at a younger age. Heart attack, stroke, and blockages in leg arteries can result.
Hearing Loss
Hearing impairment occurs earlier and more severely in people with diabetes. High blood glucose causes nerve injury and blood vessel damage throughout the body, including in the ears. Getting glucose under control can help prevent and manage hearing loss.
The Importance of Catching Diabetes Early
As you can see, undiagnosed diabetes takes a heavy toll on the body when left untreated. The encouraging news is that getting diabetes under control early on can prevent or delay serious complications.
That’s why it’s critical to recognize symptoms and get screened if you have risk factors. Diabetes screening is recommended for adults starting at age 45, or younger for overweight people with other risks.
Testing for diabetes might include:
- Casual plasma glucose test
- Fasting blood sugar test
- Oral glucose tolerance test
- A1C test for average blood glucose
If results are abnormal, repeat testing can confirm the diagnosis. Your doctor can help tailor the best treatment plan for your unique health profile and needs.
The main types of diabetes include:
- Type 1 diabetes – The body’s immune system destroys insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Treatment requires insulin administration.
- Type 2 diabetes – The body develops insulin resistance and can’t properly use insulin. Lifestyle treatment and various medications can help manage type 2 diabetes.
- Gestational diabetes – Abnormal blood sugar develops during pregnancy. Following a healthy diet and monitoring glucose levels is important to ensure a healthy pregnancy.
Your doctor will determine which type of diabetes you have based on symptoms, health history, exam findings, and test results. From there, developing an effective treatment plan is key.
Living with Diabetes
Learning to successfully manage diabetes takes time and practice. But many tools and resources exist to help you thrive with diabetes, including:
- Monitoring blood glucose at home
- Following a meal plan for stable energy
- Tracking carbohydrate intake
- Staying active with daily exercise
- Taking medications as directed
- Reducing stress and staying positive
- Joining a diabetes support group
- Enlisting help from a diabetes educator
Despite diligent self-care, blood sugar ups and downs will happen. Don’t beat yourself up. Regain control with extra monitoring and positive problem-solving. With time, you will learn how to balance meals, activity, and medication to keep your blood sugar in a healthy range.
Tips for Living Well with Diabetes
Here are some additional self-care tips for living well despite a diabetes diagnosis:
- Monitor blood sugar regularly – Keeping tabs on glucose levels helps guide treatment decisions to optimize control.
- Prevent low blood sugar – Carry a quick-acting carb source in case blood sugar drops too low unexpectedly.
- Examine your feet – Check feet daily for cuts, blisters, red spots or swelling to prevent infections.
- Visit healthcare providers – See your doctor and eye doctor regularly to screen for diabetes complications.
- Quit smoking – Smoking raises blood sugar levels and harms blood vessels. Talk to your doctor about quitting.
- Find support – Having a strong support network makes living with diabetes much easier.
The Bottom Line
Left untreated, diabetes can damage the body through chronically high blood sugar levels. But with proper treatment and self-care, people living with diabetes can stay healthy and avoid serious complications.
Looking out for symptoms like frequent urination, increased thirst, blurry vision, cuts that won’t heal, and unexplained weight loss can lead to an early diabetes diagnosis. This gives you the power to take charge of treatment and work closely with your healthcare team.
While living with diabetes poses many challenges, thousands of people successfully manage their condition every day. By monitoring your blood sugar, taking medications as prescribed, and implementing healthy lifestyle habits, you can gain control over diabetes and live fully and vibrantly.