Diabetes is caused when the body fails to produce enough insulin to maintain the sugar level in the body. Insulin is secreted by the organ pancreas which is present in our body and looks just like a leaf.
When pancreas fails to produce enough insulin to maintain the sugar level in our body, it leads to a metabolic disorder which is known as Diabetes.
Even if you don’t have diabetes, you can probably imagine how challenging it must be to live with a disease that requires such constant vigilance of your physical health.
You might not immediately pick up on how mentally taxing diabetes can be, though. In fact, it’s considered to be one of the most psychologically demanding of the chronic medical illnesses and is often associated with several psychiatric disorders.
Identifying the facts about diabetes is essential when it comes to managing the condition. There is so much information available out there making it difficult to know what is right and what is not.
This article aims to help dispel some of the most common myths about diabetes – let’s have a look at some of them.
Here Are 10 Myths About Diabetes You Need To Stop Believing
1. Diabetes isn’t a serious disease
Diabetes is a serious, chronic disease. In fact, two out of three people with diabetes will die from cardiovascular-related episodes, such as a heart attack or stroke. However, diabetes can be controlled with proper medications and lifestyle changes.
2. If you’re overweight, you’ll automatically get type 2 diabetes
Being overweight or obese is a serious risk factor, but there are other factors that put you at an increased risk. Having a family history of diabetes, having high blood pressure, or being sedentary are just some of these other factors.
3. Diabetics cannot eat potatoes
Potatoes are a starchy vegetable, which means that they are rich in carbohydrates and can raise blood sugar levels quickly.
Still, It doesn’t make sense to look at an ingredient or a particular food in isolation at all.
It’s the quantity of carbs which creates a problem for a diabetic, not the actual carb of choice.
4. Diabetics need to eat six small meals a day
This is much-discussed, but some doctors say that two or three full meals a day is better than snacking through the day.
Every time you eat anything, you do have a small spike in blood sugar, which you don’t want as a diabetic.
Eating complete meals with complex carbs, proteins and fats can cause lesser blood sugar fluctuations.
5. If you have Diabetes, you cannot have an active lifestyle
Truth- This myth is particularly problematic because many long-term studies have shown the positive impact regular physical activity has on lowering glucose.
6. Type-1 diabetes is caused by a poor diet
Once again, this is false. The ADA reports that type-1 diabetes, which is less common, is caused by genetics and unknown factors. It’s also typically diagnosed in children and young adults.
Because it only affects five per cent of the people who have diabetes, type-1 can often be misunderstood. A person with type-1 diabetes is unable to produce insulin, which isn’t a result of lifestyle factors.
7. A diabetic person should not eat rice
Excess carbohydrate consumption typically raises blood sugar levels after a meal. With some pulses and chapattis, a moderate amount of rice can be consumed.
8. One can never become free of diabetes
Diabetics do not need insulin or medications indefinitely. It can be managed with certain preventative steps such as a well-balanced diet, lifestyle changes, herbal therapies and certain yoga activities.
9. Only older people get diabetes
Type 2 was once called “adult-onset diabetes” and, indeed, doctors diagnose adults between 45 and 64 the most. But over 5,000 children develop type 2 diabetes every year.
In fact, type 2 is now found in kids as young as 3 years old.
10. Diabetes always leads to blindness and amputation
Thankfully, this is a myth. While it is true that diabetes can lead to blindness and amputations in some cases, it is not inevitable. And for individuals who manage their condition carefully, these outcomes are rare.