Diabetes

Golden Corner Family Practice

Family Medicine located in West Union, SC

If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with diabetes, you understand the importance of regular medical care and medical diagnostics. With diabetes, you want to avoid fluctuations of glucose highs and lows. Golden Corner Family Practice in West Union, South Carolina, treats many patients with diabetes -- both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Call or book an appointment online today for expert, caring treatment for your diabetes.

Diabetes Q & A

What is diabetes?

Diabetes is a disease in which your body produces too much sugar (glucose). Normally, your pancreas produces a hormone called insulin, which helps the glucose from food move to your cells to give you energy. If you have diabetes, you make too little or no insulin.

Type 1 diabetes, formerly called juvenile diabetes, usually occurs in children and young adults. Only 5% of diabetes patients are type 1.

Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes. Over time, your pancreas doesn’t make enough insulin to keep your blood sugar (glucose) at a normal level.

Gestational diabetes can occur during pregnancy; changes in your hormones prevent your body from using insulin normally.

Monogenic diabetes is a rare (1-4%) form of diabetes from alterations of just one gene. It’s inherited.

What are the symptoms of diabetes?

Common symptoms include the following:

Frequent urination
Frequent thirst
Hunger
Excessive fatigue
Blurred vision
Minor cuts and bruises that don’t heal well
Weight loss (type 1)
Tingling, pain, or lack of feeling in your hands or feet (type 2)

What are effective treatments for diabetes?

Golden Corner Family Practice provides comprehensive integrated treatment of diabetes. Those with type 1 diabetes must have insulin to live. Some people with type 2 diabetes can manage their diabetes without medication. If you can’t, your doctor prescribes pills and/or insulin.

More than 20 types of insulin exist in the U.S. They vary in makeup and cost. Your expert physician at Golden Corner Family Practice ensures that you have the insulin that matches your needs. Injecting insulin with a syringe is the most common way to deliver it, but some people find insulin pumps or pens work well for them.

What is the role of nutrition and exercise in diabetes?

Your doctor provides detailed guidance about healthy food choices when you are living with diabetes. Beans, dark leafy green vegetables such as spinach and kale, berries, tomatoes, fish, whole grains, nuts, and milk and low-fat yogurt are all diabetes “superfoods” that help keep your insulin levels normal.

Exercise is important. If you have type 1 diabetes, your doctor explains ways to understand your body’s response to exercise, preventing your blood glucose from being too high or too low.

If you have type 2 diabetes and you’re overweight, your doctor works with you to develop a simple exercise program. Being active stimulates your cells and helps insulin work more effectively.

Call or book an appointment online today if you suspect you have diabetes.

Schedule your annual check-up today with Golden Corner Family Practice. Call or book an appointment online today.