Screening

Screening for diabetes in high risk patients is needed because many newly discovered cases of diabetes are not aware that they have had diabetes for years based on our research.

The costs of diabetes have recently spiked for each patient as well as the rapid rise in numbers of newly diagnosed cases of diabetes. 

Diabetes affects the way the body uses food for energy. The body is made of billions of cells.  These cells all need energy which comes from food and water. Insulin is needed for this conversion of food to energy. Diabetes is a disease where the body does not make insulin, or it is unable to utilize the insulin that is made. The sugar floats around the blood stream and cannot get inside the cells where it is needed for cell metabolism. It does a lot of good in the cells and it does a lot of harm when it is in high levels in the blood.

 This cascade of metabolic problems in diabetes causes the complications of diabetes. Proper use of food into energy allows for better exercise tolerance and endurance. This in turn increases the cardiac output, respiratory response, increase circulation, increase in the rate of metabolic burn, and use of glucose into energy and muscle strength (instead of more fat deposits, insulin resistance, deposit of acids and sugars into organ tissues and cells that cause harm).

A HbA1c test can help tell how someone’s blood sugar has been doing during the last 3 months.