Interconnected and Deadly
Having diabetes can already be an uphill battle for your body. The sad truth is that there is another, even deadlier disorder than can be directly linked to diabetes: heart disease. Two out of three people diagnosed with diabetes die from either heart disease or a stroke. This isn't the best news, but you actually can manage both diseases by adhering to the same rules for both.
Diabetes and Heart Disease Explained
Diabetes is characterized as a disease in which your body does not consistently produce the right levels of, or properly uses, insulin. Your body needs insulin to convert sugars and starches into energy. There actually isn't an official cause of diabetes, but studies have shown that obesity and lack of exercise are major contributing factors to it. Diabetes also comes in several forms: Type 1, Type 2, Gestational and Pre-diabetes. Type 1 is when your body doesn't produce insulin, whereas Type 2 is when your body resists insulin. Pre-diabetes is diagnosed if your body's sugar levels are beyond normal limits but not high enough to turn into Type 2. Gestational diabetes, when pregnant, happens if your body isn't making enough insulin to support the baby's growth.
Heart disease actually refers to a number of abnormalities associated with the heart and the cardiovascular system. It is the leading cause of death in America as of 2007. The main type of heart disease is Coronary Artery Disease (CAD), in which a plaque build-up within your arteries slows down the cardiovascular system and eventually causes part of your heart muscles to fail.
The Connection and the Treatment
So how are heart disease and diabetes linked? By controlling your weight, monitoring your nutrition and increasing realistic exercise, you can manage both diseases well. For example, foods that are high in fat and starches can also be high in sugar and LDL, or bad cholesterol. Too much bad cholesterol in diabetics makes it even harder for the cells to receive insulin. Constantly eating such foods can cause a plaque build-up of the "bad" cholesterol in your artery walls. At the same time, you may be taking in more glucose than your diabetic levels of insulin can handle. By cutting out most foods with high levels of those bad actors, you control both diseases.
The same goes with exercise. Lack of exercise is a major contributor to diabetes, but staying active also gets your blood circulating faster, pushing out some of the plaque build-up that comes with heart disease. By regularly exercising, you can prevent diabetes and manage heart disease at the same time.
Tags: your body, both diseases, plaque build-up, cardiovascular system, exercise major, heart disease