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When you think of diabetes treatment, your first thoughts are
insulin and severe dietary restrictions. Luckily, for most people
with diabetes, you are wrong.
With type 2 diabetes, the most common form of diabetes, most
people can be treated with a simple combination of making healthier
food choices and adding exercise to their daily routine. If these
changes don’t work, then doctors usually prescribe one of the many
oral medications available to help manage the disease. If none of
this works, then it may become necessary for the patient to start on
insulin injections, but that is usually the last line of defense and
not the first.
Type 2 diabetes is the inability of the body to use the insulin
secreted by the pancreas. Insulin is used by the cells to absorb the
glucose, or sugar, necessary for energy or cell growth. This
inability of the body to use the insulin is called insulin
resistance and it has varied causes: genetics, excess body weight
and a sedentary lifestyle are the most commonly used examples. This
is why the most commonly prescribed treatment of diabetes is dietary
change and exercise. Doctors and health care professionals want to
see if patients can manage their blood glucose levels without
resorting to medication.
However, if following a healthy diet and exercise are not
effective, there are medications that can help. These medications
are designed to either increase insulin output, improve the body’s
response to insulin, reduce the amount of glucose released by the
liver, reduce the absorption of carbohydrates from the intestine or
slow the emptying of the stomach to delay the release of carbs for
digestion and absorption into the intestines. They can be used in
conjunction with each other to achieve the best result.
Usually it is necessary to experiment with a medication or
combination of medications to get the best result and often it is
necessary to change medications after prolonged use. It is also
important to remember that healthy eating habits and exercise are
still necessary; medications can’t do all of the work on their own.
There is no set treatment of diabetes that works the same for
every person and not everyone responds to treatment in the same way.
However, there are enough treatment options that make it possible
for almost every person with diabetes to live a long and satisfying
life.
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