{"id":53901,"date":"2023-11-10T12:29:12","date_gmt":"2023-11-10T01:59:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.firstaidpro.com.au\/?p=53901"},"modified":"2023-11-10T12:29:14","modified_gmt":"2023-11-10T01:59:14","slug":"diabetes-first-aid-from-low-blood-sugar-symptoms-to-coma","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.firstaidpro.com.au\/blog\/diabetes-first-aid-from-low-blood-sugar-symptoms-to-coma\/","title":{"rendered":"Diabetes First Aid – From Low Blood Sugar Symptoms to Coma"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Diabetes affects how your body processes sugar, leading to high blood glucose (sugar) levels. It isn’t just a single condition but 3 distinct varieties that are complex and require round-the-clock monitoring and care.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s important to manage diabetic levels as short-term effects can force the kidneys to overwork while long-term heightened levels can damage blood vessels and nerves, with compounding effects on the kidneys along with bonus consequences for the heart, brain, feet and eyes.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By managing sugar levels, you reduce your risk of developing life-threatening complications and improve your overall health, which is usually accomplished through a doctor-directed combination of medication, diet and exercise.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is Diabetes<\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes referred to as dextrose, blood sugar or corn syrup, glucose is a form of simple sugar (also called a monosaccharide), a subcategory of carbohydrates – think cereals like rice, wheat, potatoes and many processed foods.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carbohydrates are one of the three macronutrients that are required to sustain life, the other 3 being fats like milk, butter or cooking oils, and proteins like meat or eggs. The body makes the glucose in these macronutrients available through the catabolic (breaking down) function of metabolism.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the human body and biology in general, glucose is the number 1 fuel source, and its concentration in blood is primarily regulated by the insulin interaction.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Insulin is an anabolic (building up) hormone, secreted by beta cells in the pancreas in response to sensing high levels of blood sugar, speeding the uptake of glucose in the body’s cells and bringing levels back down to normal.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diabetes is when this insulin interaction malfunctions and glucose isn’t absorbed by the body’s cells, resulting in abnormally high levels of glucose in the blood.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Type 1 Diabetes<\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The human body is incredible and can do amazing things, however, it can also commit baffling acts of self-sabotage as in the case of autoimmune diseases, wherein the immune system inexplicably attacks an otherwise perfectly healthy part of the body. Nearly any part of the body can be infected from the thyroid (Graves’ Disease) to the intestinal tract (Crohn’s Disease) to the beta cells in the pancreas – enter Type 1 Diabetes.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Type 1 diabetes usually starts suddenly in childhood or adolescence. The main sign is, naturally, very high blood sugar from a partial or total reduction in insulin production, which can manifest<\/span> early symptoms such as:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n