As a person ages, there are certain illnesses that they are more prone to contracting. One of these illnesses is diabetes. Diabetes is common in the elderly, simply because they are at a higher risk for developing this as it becomes harder and harder for their bodies to manage their insulin on their own. When it does become harder to manage diabetes, many elderly are given medications in an effort to combat this. The person may end up taking insulin shots or have an insulin pump that is always connected to their body in order to make sure their insulin does not get too high or too low.

Who Is At Risk?

Anyone who is considered to be a senior citizen is at risk. However, there are certain criteria that can make someone at more risk than other people. These include:

– Having dealt with a form of diabetes at one point in their life. This is especially true of women who had gestational diabetes while they were pregnant.
– Smoking or drinking can increase the chances of suffering from diabetes as you age.
– Being overweight
– Not eating properly
– Not getting enough physical activity

It is estimated that one out of every five individuals who are sixty-fives years old and older will be affected by some form of diabetes.

Complications Of Diabetes

There are several complications that elderly people can experience if their diabetes is not managed properly, or if their diabetes still escalates despite treatment. These complications can include:

– Affecting the functioning of kidneys which can lead to kidney failure, meaning having to take dialysis treatment in order to flush the body of toxins
– Amputation of limbs is common in the elderly, especially the feet and legs, as diabetes can cause massive infections to set up that will not respond to treatment.
– People can go blind from diabetes
– Stroke and heart attack risks are increased for those who have diabetes

What You Can Do To Manage Diabetes

There are several things in which an elderly person can do in order to manage their diabetes:

1. Talk to your doctor and get medications that can help to overcome this
2. Eat healthy meals and limit carbohydrates that can escalate the amount of insulin in the body. It is best to talk with a nutritionist on what you can and cannot eat.
3. Exercise more in order to help regulate your body.
4. Avoid drinking or smoking as these can make it harder to manage diabetes.
5. Be proactive with your diabetes, meaning that you should test regularly and inform your doctor if your numbers are not decreasing or if they are fluctuating more throughout the day.

Diabetes is not a disease in which someone wants to mess around with. If you have diabetes it is best to live a life that is going to ensure you keep this under control. If not, you could die long before your time due to complications of this disease. Your doctor is the best person to talk with about this, and between the two of you, you should be able to get this under control.