Diabetes, the 7th cause of death in Korea, is important for constant management like wearing glasses
Jan 31, 2025
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Among them, diabetes should be the most careful in winter when the weather gets cold. This is because the body's blood circulation slows in winter, increasing the mortality rate from diabetes.
Professor Kim Eun-sook of the Department of Endocrinology at the Catholic University of Korea's Incheon St. Mary's Hospital said, `The reason diabetes is more scary is because of complications caused by diabetes than by itself`"Initial diabetes is mostly confirmed by medical examinations because there are no symptoms and it is difficult to know on your own, but when you realize symptoms of losing weight, being thirsty, and frequent urination, it may be a sign that diabetes has already begun," he warned.
◇ Weight loss, thirst, and doubt if you pee often
Diabetes is a disease in which glucose (blood sugar) in the blood is higher than normal and overflows with urine. This is why it was named diabetes. Normal people's blood sugar is controlled to the extent that urine does not overflow with sugar. The hormone 'insulin' secreted by the pancreas plays an important role in this.
When insulin is insufficient or unable to work properly, blood sugar rises, and furthermore, blood sugar is consistently high. This causes blood sugar to overflow with urine and a large amount of urine, which increases thirst due to lack of moisture in the body, and the food consumed is not used properly as energy, making it easy to feel tired and lose weight.
Diabetes tends to be generally considered light, but it is the seventh highest mortality disease in the country. According to the 2023 cause of death statistics released by the National Statistical Office late last year, 21.6 people per 100,000 people in Korea died of diabetes. In the same year (2023), more than 3.83 million patients received hospital treatment for diabetes.
This is about 7.5% of the total population in Korea. In addition, according to the 「Diabetes Fact Sheet 2024」 published by the Korean Diabetes Association in October last year, the prevalence of diabetes in the 30s or older in Korea was 14.8%, and about 5.33 million people were suffering from diabetes as of 2022.
◇ Prevent diabetes by controlling exercise and diet
In recent years, interest in borderline diabetes has also increased significantly. Boundary diabetes is a pre-diabetes stage, which means that blood sugar is higher than that of the general population and slightly lower than that of diabetic patients. In the case of fasting (plasma glucose after fasting for more than 8 hours), diabetes is considered from 126mg/dL, and if it is more than 100mg/dL, it is considered total diabetes. When tested, blood sugar for two hours (plasma glucose after two hours of 75g light bulb glucose load) can be considered diabetes if it is more than 200mg/dL, and if it is more than 140mg/dL or less than 199mg/dL, it can be considered a glucose tolerance disorder during the pre-diabetes stage. In terms of glycated hemoglobin, 5.6% or less is normal, and 5.7 to 6.4% are classified as pre-diabetes, and 6.5% as diabetes.
First of all, if you are diagnosed with pre-diabetes at a regular checkup, it is recommended to start exercising along with regular eating habits and a balanced diet. If you are obese, it is also helpful to lose weight. Above all, a regular examination once a year is essential. In the case of high-risk diabetes groups, some studies show that controlling weight through exercise and diet control not only prevents diabetes but also lasts more than 10 years.
Professor Kim Eun-sook said "Just as we don't say we're cured by wearing glasses, managing diabetes is more important than the concept of cure" If you manage blood sugar well, you can prevent complications and live without much inconvenience in your daily life" "If blood sugar is managed thoroughly in the initial stage, the risk of complications due to hyperglycemia can be greatly reduced."If you are diagnosed with diabetes or pre-diabetes, you should follow up with a regular medical examination."," he stressed.
◇Check blood sugar fluctuations during treatment
Individual 'customized treatment' Recommendation = When treating diabetes, it is important to check the fluctuation of blood sugar, which is the difference between the highest and lowest blood sugar during the day, and how stably it is controlled. This is because as blood sugar changes rapidly, oxidative stress in blood vessels increases, stimulating endothelial cells in blood vessels and causing blood vessels to become sick, such as arteriosclerosis. In addition, since the fluctuation of blood sugar depends on the highest and lowest blood sugar during the day, it is also deeply related to low blood sugar and high blood sugar. It is important to manage that there are no major diseases in appropriate figures.
If diabetes is well controlled, blood sugar fluctuations are not significant. However, if it is not controlled, blood sugar changes from time to time depending on the drug's action time, dosage, amount of food eaten, and exercise. At this time, blood sugar fluctuations are used as an indicator to manage blood sugar fluctuations through various treatments along with treatments.
Diabetes patients have excessively high blood sugar levels even if they eat the same amount of food as normal people. It's good to have a habit of sharing food little by little several times. In general, it is recommended to consume 50-60% of carbohydrates and 20% of fat and protein, respectively. However, it can be applied individually according to eating habits, preferences, and treatment goals.
Recent diabetes clinical practice guidelines recommend personalized treatment. We present individualized blood sugar control goals that take the situation into account and add various situations that patients have to the indicators based on blood sugar levels. In any case, the goal of diabetes treatment is to improve the patient's blood sugar control and minimize the risk of diabetes complications. Therefore, there may be differences in recommended dietary therapy depending on the individual's condition, such as being too obese or accompanied by dyslipidemia or showing signs of kidney abnormalities such as proteinuria. After consulting with the medical staff, follow the appropriate dietary therapy for the individual's disease condition.
Professor Kim Eun-sook emphasized, "In order to diagnose and effectively manage diabetes early, it is important to use regular check-ups provided by the National Health Insurance Corporation or to have regular check-ups at least every year if you belong to a high-risk group."When diagnosed with diabetes, it is very important to consult with medical staff to reach blood sugar targets such as lifestyle correction and medication early, and to find the right way for the patient and receive proper treatment in time to prevent complications and lead a healthy life."
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
