Numbness Is A Warning Sign – Diabetes Symptoms

Diabetes will cause lots of long term health problems if you don’t control your blood sugar and your sugar levels stay high. For examples, high blood sugar causes diabetic neuropathy, which damages the nerves that can send signals from your hands and feet.

In turn, diabetic neuropathy can cause numbness or tingling in your fingers, toes, hands, and feet. Not only that, it can lead to feelings of burning, sharp, or aching pain (diabetic nerve pain). The pain may be mild at first, but it can get worse over time and spread up your legs or arms. For some, walking can be painful, and even the softest touch can be excruciating.

Up to 50% of people with diabetes may experience nerve pain. If you suffer with nerve damage it can affect your ability to sleep, decrease your quality of life, and can also cause depression which all conspire to make a bad situation worse.

There is no known cure for nerve damage, and once the nerves are damaged, this probably can’t be reversed because the body has a very limited ability to repair nerve tissue. But the good news is that you can the nerve damage simply by changing your lifestyle:

• lowering your blood sugar
• treating nerve pain
• regularly checking your feet to make sure they are free of injury, wounds, or infection

Managing your blood glucose is important because it can help prevent additional damage to the retinal nerves.

Ways to better manage your blood glucose:

• Avoid foods high in excess sugars, including fizzy drinks, foods high in carbs, fruit juices, and processed snacks.
• Eat foods high in fiber. These foods will help keep blood sugars at a steady state to some degree
• Eat foods that contain healthy fats, like red meat and butter (especially from pastured animals). Saturated fats are good for you despite what the processed food industry wants you to believe
• Eat the rainbow: plenty of salad and above-ground vegetables with every meal.
• Exercise regularly, and try to get outside if you can to get fresh air.
• Get as many vitamins and minerals into your body as possible
• Monitor your blood sugar readings to help you identify patterns and unusual changes in your blood sugar levels.

In addition to managing your blood glucose levels, it’s important to pay attention to your feet and legs. Nerves in the legs and feet can be damaged, which can lead to reduced feeling. This means that you might not notice it if you cut or injure your foot or leg, which can lead to infections or other potentially dangerous problems.