Diabetes Specialist
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Premium Care Internal Medicine
Internists located in Santa Barbara, CA
More than a third of American adults have prediabetes, and about 90% of them don’t even know it. At this stage, blood sugar is slightly higher than normal and diabetes can often be prevented. Dr. Brittany Bryanat Premium Care Internal Medicine offers comprehensive services to help adults of all ages prevent and treat Type 2 diabetes. If you would like to learn more about diabetes testing and preventive steps you can take, call our office in Santa Barbara, California, or schedule an appointment online.
Diabetes Q & A
Am I at risk for developing Type 2 diabetes?
A risk factor is any health condition, behavior, or characteristic that increases your chance of developing a disease. You can’t change some risk factors, such as a genetic predisposition, but you can control the primary factors that contribute to Type 2 diabetes to lower your chance of developing the disease.
The risk factors for Type 2 diabetes include:
- Overweight
- High blood pressure
- Lack of regular exercise
- High blood levels of triglycerides
- Low levels of the good cholesterol (high-density lipoproteins, HDL)
You also have a higher risk if you have had a history of gestational diabetes, heart disease, or polycystic ovary syndrome. While you can’t change pre-existing risk factors, you can still lower your chance of Type 2 diabetes by avoiding controllable risk factors.
What health complications does Type 2 diabetes cause?
When you have Type 2 diabetes, your body either doesn’t synthesize enough insulin, or it can’t use the insulin that’s produced, which is called insulin resistance. As a result, levels of blood glucose (sugar) stay higher than normal. High blood sugar gradually damages your blood vessels and nerves, which leads to serious health problems such as:
- Heart disease
- Kidney disease
- Wounds that don’t heal
- Nerve damage in eyes and feet
- Skin infections
How do I know if I have diabetes?
Diabetes doesn’t cause symptoms at first, or the signs are so subtle you may not notice. The earliest symptoms may include thirst, frequent urination, hunger, and fatigue.
Some people develop acanthosis nigricans, which are patches of dark, velvety skin in body folds such as the armpits and neck. You may also begin to experience blurry vision, get frequent infections, or have sores that don’t heal.
How do you treat Type 2 diabetes?
Treatment for diabetes focuses on keeping your blood sugar within a normal range. To accomplish this, the doctors at Premium Care Internal Medicine evaluate your overall health, then develop an individualized plan that includes the following:
Dietary changes
You learn how to avoid foods that spike blood sugar and develop a healthy calorie-controlled diet if you need to lose weight.
Exercise
Staying active is great for your overall health, but exercise also lowers blood sugar.
Medications
If lifestyle changes don’t keep blood sugar under control, many medications that work through different mechanisms are available to help lower blood sugar.
