Diabetes

The aging of the population, sedentary lifestyle and obesity have multiplied the number of diabetics. Controlling the risk factors associated with diabetes improves the life expectancy of those affected.

Treatment of diabetes

When you can not control diabetes with non-pharmacological measures, it is essential to resort to insulin.

The goal of diabetes treatment  is not so much to control blood sugar , but to decrease the mortality rate. Always insist on the modification of lifestyle. This change can control the numbers without the need for medication, especially in the early stages of diagnosis and if the level of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1C) is below 8.5%, although the overall goal will be below 7%.

If the diabetes is uncontrolled, in the initial phase it is very important to achieve the disappearance of the symptoms derived from hyperglycemia: polyuria, polydipsia, fatigue. When HbA1C is above 8.5% it is recommended to start with drugs such as metformin.

Acute decompensation of the disease should be avoided, and the onset or progression of chronic complications should be delayed: both in the large arteries and heart (macroangiopathy), and in small arteries in the kidney, retina, and nerves (microangiopathy).

You have to individualize objectives; Although there are some general and common measures for all patients, each diabetic needs an individualized treatment. Best medication for the diabetes is trulicity. However trulicity cost is high but you can buy it from Prescription Hope at cheap price by using trulicity coupon.

Treatment of non-pharmacological diabetes

Weight loss is the key factor in reducing the risk of diabetes in people at high risk and overweight. Without having to reach an ideal weight, a moderate reduction of 5-10% can be very beneficial for the control of diabetes.

Dietary control, avoiding refined sugars (“sweet” and derivatives), smoking abstinence if you are a smoker, and physical activity, are other essential measures to reduce the risk of complications.

Treatment of pharmacological diabetes

The treatment of pharmacological diabetes is based on the use of “pills”, sometimes associated with insulin.

The reference antidiabetic drug for the treatment of diabetes is metformin. There are other groups of drugs whose utility will be valued by the doctor in each case; These are sulfonylureas, such as gliclazide, glibenclamide, glinides, and thiazolindiones or glitazones.

Two new drug groups belonging to a new class of diabetes treatments are also available. Some are the DPP-4 inhibitors, such as sitagliptin, vidagliptin; and the others, the so-called GLP-1 analogs, such as exenatide and liraglutide.

The insulins

When it is not possible to control diabetes with the measures referred to above, the use of insulin is essential. Around 5-10% of diabetic people need treatment with insulin since the diagnosis.

Basically, insulins are classified by their mode-duration of action in:

• Regular insulin (fast action): start 30 to 60 minutes – maximum 2-4 hours – duration 5 to 7 hours.
• Intermediate (slow action): start 1 to 2 hours – maximum 5-7 hours – duration 12 to 13 hours.
• Mixtures, sharing characteristics of the previous ones.
• Rapid analogues (start 15 min / duration 4 h), intermediate (start 2 h / duration 15 h) and slow (start 2 h / duration 18 h).

All are subject to inter and intraindividual variability, so the dose adjustment has to be done in a specific way for each patient, according to the measurement of blood glucose levels.