High blood glucose will cause two different situations that will affect your skin and feet. First of all it can cause nerve damage. Nerve damage is called neuropathy and when it happens in diabetics, it is called diabetic neuropathy.

When you have nerve damage in your legs and feet there is a possibility that you will not feel any aches or pains, but you may not feel heat or cold either. You may not notice a sore on you leg or foot because you don’t feel any pain. This untreated sore can get severely infected.

The second situation that can occur with diabetes concerning the feet and legs is poor blood flow. When you don’t have enough blood circulating in the legs and feet, the sores take even longer to heal. This condition of poor blood circulation is called peripheral vascular (PVD). Smoking can even make this situation worse.

The two conditions together create a foot or leg problem

It is quite possible to have a blister from tight fitting shoes and not even notice it visibly or feel the pain. Because of the nerve damage and poor circulation, the blister does not heal properly. This means, in this example, the two conditions work together to create the complicated that will eventually lead to gangrene if not treated quickly. In some patients who suffer from diabetes, the sore may get infected. It is the extra sugar in the blood that feeds the germs in the festered blister and they multiply. Some times the infection can get so bad that it doesn’t heal. When that happens gangrene can set in. Tests for gangrene:

• Physical examination.
• X-rays.
• Arteriogram This is a kind of x-ray to check for blood vessel blockage.
• Blood test to check white blood cell count.
• CAT Scan to check internal body organs.
• Tissue culture or fluid sample from the wound or sore to look for any bacterial infection.

Surgery to remove the dead skin from the wound

When gangrene sets in the tissue and surrounding skin around the sore will die. It will turn black and it will be smelly. In mild cases of gangrene dead tissue will be removed to prevent further spread and infection. Removing the dead tissue is called debridement.

Treatment for gangrene

Gangrene needs to be treated immediately. Gangrene can spread and when that happens the doctor has to amputate the dead area often having to cut off a foot or even a good part of the leg in order to stop the gangrene from spreading. Even with gangrene the wounds may heal but it all depends on how controlled blood sugar levels are, how much damage was done, if the infection is serious and still active, and how much good blood is flowing around the area of the wound. If these factors are not favorable then amputation is often the option.

Treatment

• Removal of dead skin from the wound site – sometimes several surgeries are necessary to promote healing.
• Antibiotics.
• Surgery to improve the blood supply to the affected area.
• Treatment in intensive units.
• Reconstruction surgery.

To prevent gangrene

• Wounds must be taken care of immediately.
• Patients should watch for redness, swelling and especially leakage.

Type 2 diabetics must see their doctors immediately before letting the wound get worse.

Diabetics with any wound such note if they have fever

Fever is a sign of a complication. Diabetics should periodically watch for wounds or changing skin color on their legs and feet to prevent serious complications.

For example, there is a condition called Celiac disease, which has been linked with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. In type 1 diabetes, which is the most common of all chronic diseases in children, the pancreatic islet beta cells are killed by the child’s own immune system. The body then is incapable of producing the right amount of insulin to keep the body healthy. Unfortunately, life long insulin medications are prescribed as diabetic treatments. Children with juvenile diabetes develop and intolerance to gluten.

Celiac disease is also and autoimmune system disease; and these children are experiencing their own immune system attacking their intestinal mucosa because of the intolerance to gluten. The children grow into adults, but need gluten replacement their entire lives. If a type 1 diabetic is not treated with the proper medication serious complications can develop.

New research have found a gene, which is linked to both type 1 diabetes and celiac disease.

Celiac Disease

Celiac Disease is also called gluten-sensitive enteropathy, notropical sprue and celiac sprue. Celiac disease produces intolerance for gluten, which is a protein, found in foods containing wheat and certain other grains. That means when you eat bread or pasta, or even cookies if you are intolerant to gluten you may have celiac disease. Again only your doctor will be able to tell for sure.

Every time you eat something that contains the gluten protein, it causes a bad reaction in your small intestine. As a result, the nutrients from the food are not being absorbed properly.

The symptoms of Celiac disease can start in either childhood or adulthood. The symptoms may come and go and for that reason it is often hard to diagnose. Though mostly associated with type 1 diabetes where about 20 percent of people with type 1 diabetes also have celiac disease, about one in 250 people who have type 2 diabetes will also have it.

Celiac symptoms

The symptoms of Celiac disease includes:

• Appetite loss
• Weight loss
• Failure to grow (specific to children)
• Irritability
• Fatigue
• Depression
• Anemia
• Skin rashes
• Unexplained hypoglycemia (low blood pressure) in people who have diabetes People with Celiac disease often have bowel issues. Chronic diarrhea such as in irritable bowel syndrome and Crohn’s disease is very common though not present in every case

People suffering from Celiac disease can suffer from:

• Lactose intolerance
• Stress
• Parasitic and viral infections
• Gastropareisis, relating to diabetes

Diagnosis of Celiac Disease

Usually blood tests and a small intestine biopsy can detect Celiac Disease

A test you can try on your own if your doctor is not willing to look at the possibility that you may have celiac disease or you cannot find a celiac specialist in your area is to go gluten free to see if the symptoms subside. The trouble is gluten has be completely eliminated not partially eliminated and if take just one cookie you will suffer from the symptoms. You may not even know you are consuming gluten, as you might use a brand of soya sauce that contains it or you might be on a certain medication that contains it.

Also, as a diabetic you have an additional challenge of selecting carbohydrate choices which are gluten free, but might affect your blood sugar level. These are all concerns you must think about, but you can start with your doctor and consult a dietitian who could possibly help you with your choices as well.

There is a complication of diabetes known as Gastroparesis. Gastroparesis is stomach paralysis and it is caused by nerve damage diabetic neuropathy. It is the vagus nerve that is specifically damaged in this condition. The vagus nerve is a nerve that is known as a vagabond nerve because it wanders around the body from the brainstem all the way down to the colon. The vagus nerve is responsible for controlling heart rate, sweating, gastrointestinal contractions and a number of other biological involuntary functions on its course along the way. Gastropareisis is specific to vagus nerve damage relating to stomach contractions.

Normal stomach functioning

The stomach is a hollow muscle organ serving as a storage area. It is about the size of a melon. If you really stretch it, it can hold up to a gallon of food content. When the stomach and vagus is nerve is properly functioning the vagus nerve will prompt the stomach to contract and crush and churn food into small particles and then it will mix up with the acids and enzymes produced in the stomach’s inner lining These contractions will come in waves of three or four contractions every minute.

It then leaves the pyloric value (about one eight of an ounce stomach content) and continues on down the small intestine. The process of emptying the stomach into the small intestines takes four hours. If you eat fat it takes even longer.

Damage to the vagus nerve

Damage to the vagus nerve comes from years of high blood sugars. When the vagus nerve is damaged the stomach is paralyzed and does not perform the contractions and as a result the food just stays there; not broken down properly and it can ferment and grow bacteria. This undigested food can create hard balls called bezoars.

Diabetes due to uncontrolled sugar levels is the main cause of Gastroparesis

Both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetics can contract Gastropareisis. Unfortunately once gastroparesis is present blood sugar becomes even harder to manage due to erratic stomach contractions.

Symptoms of gastroparesis

• Bloating
• Abdominal pain
• Nausea
• Feeling full after even only a few bites of food
• Weight loss
• Heartburn
• Vomiting
• Diagnostic tests

The diagnostic test for gastroparesis include:

Drinking or eating substances like eggs that have been injected with a harmless radioactive ingredient and then the substance is watched on a scan to see how it goes down.

Barium x-ray here you must fast for 12 hours and then drink a sludgy liquid that coats the inside of the stomach so that it can be viewed on an x-ray.

Inserting a thin tube down the throat into the stomach to test for strength and frequency of stomach contradictions.

Gastroparesis Treatment

Changing in your diet is the best treatment for gastroparesis. Even smaller meals than you are eating now can help. It is better to take more, but smaller meals than three larger ones. If you find you have less of an appetite at supper time switch to eat your heaviest meals in the morning and drink only liquids in the afternoon. Lying on your right side after eating can help the digestive process.

Fiber can be a problem as it does not breakdown well in the stomach and eating raw vegetables such as cucumbers as you mentioned would be an issue. You may want to eat more cooked vegetables and soft foods, pureed foods, fish, grains, chicken, yogurt, refined breads and or liquids. You will need to cut down on fats, and you have to drink a lot of water especially if you vomit a lot.

Certain medications such as antidepressants, pain medication, calcium channel blockers, high blood pressure pills, lithium, and antacids that contain aluminum hydroxide can worsen the symptoms. Check with your doctor and let him/her know all the medications you are talking so he or she can coordinate them with the new treatment diabetic medications.

There are medications to control gastroparesis, and of course your doctor will prescribe what is needed. You may need to test your blood insulin more often and take insulin after a meal instead of before to reduce the symptoms. Nevertheless, your doctor will advise the best treatment plan for you.

Living with Gastroparesis

Gastroparesis is not life threatening, but can be annoying especially when you have to control the foods you eat which is a condition that can make managing diabetes even harder. However, the disease is not life threatening and is somewhat manageable with proper care.

It is sometimes hard to tell the symptoms apart and sometimes the aches and soreness associated with diabetes will be confused with fibromyalgia. There really are no specific tests that diagnose fibromyalgia however there are certain things to look for which a doctor will find during a physical examination.

Unlike diabetes, which can be diagnosed by urine and blood tests and even arthritis, which also shows up on x-rays, there are no diagnostic tests that actually pinpoint fibromyalgia. The doctor checks for tender points in various parts of the body, which seem to be very sensitive to touch regardless of the amount of pressure applied. This sensitivity is found in the arms the legs and various other parts of the body. The American College of Rheumatology recognizes a total of 18 different tender points “fibro points” and it will take the identification of 11 of them to afford a diagnosis of fibromyalgia.

The aches and pains in people suffering from diabetes mellitus are confined to a certain area of the body. There are many diabetics who also suffer from nerve compression and these symptoms appear specifically in the arms and legs. Yet it is very easy to confuse the two medical conditions.

How to tell if the aches and pains are a result of diabetes

Diabetics who have nerve compression or nerve entrapment will have this pain in a localized site it will not be all over the body as it is with fibromyalgia. In the diabetic patient the nerve may be entrapped at the wrist or the ankle. This does not seem to be the same for fibromyalgia pain. Fibromyalgia pain is undefined pain anywhere in the body and this pain is of unknown origin. Doctors can tell through an examination which pain is associated with which disease.

Irritable bowel syndrome

Beyond the symptoms of pain, fibromyalgia patients can suffer from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS); Irritable bowel syndrome is a trademark symptom of fibromyalgia. (IBS) is a condition where the bowel does not function normally and there is chronic diarrhea and abdominal pain associated with bowel movements, bloating and gas. There is evidence that certain foods such as diary and fatty food, carbonated drinks, alcohol and caffeine can trigger the bouts of IBS.

Diabetics who have certain digestive disorders can also suffer from complications and irritable bowel syndrome is often one of the symptoms. Often time a diet high in fiber is recommended for irritable bowel syndrome sufferers who have fibromyalgia, but at the same time these high fiber foods can interact with the blood sugar levels and make it harder to control blood glucose levels in diabetics.

The best thing to do is to consult with a gastroenterologist or and endocrinologist and let the specialist know that you are suffering from diabetes mellitus and fibromyalgia. Also, you may need to see a dietitian for a diabetic diet, which will keep your blood sugar levels in control while controlling you irritable bowel syndrome. Juggling the foods for the two conditions can become very tricky and it is important to get good fibromyalgia and diabetic information about the foods you will need to eat and the foods you will need to avoid.

Stress

Stress is a big concern for people suffering from both diabetes and fibromyalgia. Stress does not cause irritable bowel syndrome but it does contribute to bouts of diarrhea.

There is no doubt that people suffering from both diabetes mellitus compounded with fibromyalgia live very stressful lives. Daily routines are interrupted and social lives can become almost non-existence. With the myriad of aches and pains, and painful flare ups sufferers of these two conditions never know from one day to the next how they will feel. It is hard to plan activities in advance. Even though people can still work and live a quality life with diabetes mellitus, sufferers of fibromyalgia are often no longer able to work and become disabled.

Besides being followed by your regular medical specialists, your doctor may suggest a psychologist or counselor to help you cope with the stress of everyday living and having to deal with these two diseases at once.

Thyroid disease is a common disease that most people will suffer from and the risk of getting it does increase with age. You may have just found out you had it because your doctor, already knowing you have diabetes did a screening for it.

Hypothryroidism

There is hyperthyroidism which is an over active thyroid and hypothyroidism which is an under active thyroid. Hypothyroidism is the most common form of the disease and it is the most common among older women. Hyperthyroidism is rare, in the sense that it only accounts for 5 percent of thyroid disease. Hypothyroidism accounts for 95 percent of all cases.

Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis

Usually women over 40 will contract this immune system disorder. The immune system is responsible for keeping the body healthy by attacking and killing off foreign invaders, such as viruses and bacterial infection, but for some unknown reason, in Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, the body’s immune system attacks the thyroid gland with antibodies.

First the thyroid will become inflamed and then it will begin to loss cells. As the years go by the thyroid will loose so many cells that it is not able to produce enough of its hormone to support various body functions and that is when the symptoms of hypothyroidism appear.

There is a connection between genetic factors and autoimmune diseases. People with Hashimoto’s disease may also have Graves’ disease, pernicious anemia, vitiligo, which is a skin disease and juvenile diabetes mellitus.

People suffering from diabetes will be at a higher risk for contracting hypothyroidism. The reason for this is because people already having an organ disease (pancreas in diabetes) often contract other organ diseases. About 4 million people in the United States have hypothyroidism.

People who have had tumors removed or surgery for thyroid cancer can develop hypothyroidism. Hypothyroidism can also result from the use of radioactive iodine therapy used to reduce the signs of goiters. In rare cases, the pituitary gland does not produce enough TSH hormone to stimulate the thyroid hormone.

Symptoms of Hypothyroidism

The body does not produce enough thyroid hormone in this condition. The thyroid hormone is responsible for body metabolism, when there is insufficient thyroid hormone a person can exhibit the following symptoms:

• Fatigue
• Weakness
• Inability to lose weight or weight gain
• Dry and rough pale skin
• Dry and course hair, or hair loss
• Intolerance to cold (feeling cold from the inside)
• Muscle aches and cramps
• Constipation
• Irritability
• Sexual problems
• Changes (abnormal) menstrual cycles

Thyroid sufferers will have several of these symptoms but not all of them. Also many of these symptoms are already shared by person’s suffering from diabetes mellitus and so which disease caused what is often hard to distinguish. The effects of thyroid disorders on diabetes.

The biggest concern is that thyroid dysfunction can interfere with the control of blood sugar. Hyperthyroidism (over active hormone) can worse blood glucose levels and insulin requirements for type 1 diabetes and it can create a situation for insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes. This condition occurs when there is so much sugar in the blood that the sugar receptors can no longer accept as much sugar from the person’s diet and the whole pancreatic and sugar absorption system in the blood stream breaks down.

The situation of glucose intolerance will have to be controlled with careful monitoring.

There is a chance of increased cardiovascular disease such as Atherosclerosis, and heart problems with people who have type 2 diabetes and hypothyroidism. Hypothyroidism can also interfere and add to the risk of high cholesterol, which is often present in patients suffering from type 2 diabetes.

Hypothryroidism can also be misdiagnosed for existing diabetic conditions therefore it is important to have the proper blood test.

The good thing is that once a thyroid condition has been identified there is medication that will keep it under control.

Where does that leave a woman who has type 2 diabetes and wants to breastfeed?

As a mommy to be, you are concerned about if you will pass the diabetes onto your baby.

The question remains how safe will it be for your child to be exposed to higher than normal levels of glucose in his or her blood system. As a diabetic mother whether you type 2 diabetes or gestational diabetes (meaning you just developed the diabetes as a result of pregnancy) you are at risk for high sugar levels in your own blood which you will pass onto the baby through breastfeeding. With type 2 diabetes you have high glucose levels which will have to be controlled with medication and if you have gestational diabetes your hormones are constantly changing because of the pregnancy and there will be periods when you blood sugar will rise and fall and it could be rather quickly. You will need to be on the proper medication and you will need to watch your diet and eat the rights foods. A proper diet is important for any breastfeeding mother, so that the infant gets the proper nutrients and it is even more important for a lactating diabetic mother.

Proper care

It is of utmost importance that you consult with your obstetrician/gynecologist, your future pediatrician, the hospital nursing staff, a diabetes educator and or a lactation specialist and as many of these professionals as you can. You need to get all the diabetes information that you can about your condition and breastfeeding. You might find that you will have mixed reviews from your doctor and therefore it is all the important to get some information from these other specialists as well before you make your decision of whether or not you will breastfeed.

Because high blood sugar levels can be transferred from the mother to the baby and cause their insulin levels to lower, babies are monitored very carefully when they are newborn. The baby will be checked for glucose levels, by a heel-stick blood glucose test.

Hospitals normally give the baby supplements to stabilize low blood glucose levels when they are born of diabetic mothers. The babies are often removed and observed for about 8 to 12 hours by the hospital team. Intravenous feedings may be required if a baby is showing signs of low insulin production. However, mothers can still breastfeed while the infant is being given intravenous fluids.

There is research to work in the favor of breastfeeding, the very first milk from the breast is called colostrums and this milk first emerges from the breast during the last stages of pregnancy and during the postpartum period. This milk is thicker and is a more golden in color. It is high in vitamins such as A, E, and K. It is also important for newborns to have the proteins from the mother’s milk, which are nature’s design to protect the baby’s immune system.

So in conclusion and to answer you question, breastfeeding is important for your baby’s health and yes as a diabetic mother you can breastfeed your child, but you will have to take special care and make sure your doctor and other lactation and diabetes specialists monitor you. In the hospital, the team of specialists will monitor your baby’s progress as well. If you comply with all the requirements, medication, supplements, diet, and life style changes before delivery and after, you should be okay.

What researchers need to do is to find out why diabetes has a bearing on cancer and if they can find that reason they may be able to reduce the deaths from these two diseases combined together according to Dr. Frederick Brancati, a professor of medicine and epidemiology from the renown Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, in Baltimore, Maryland.

There are currently about 24 million people in the USA who have diabetes and roughly 18 percent of new cancer patients have the disease as well. Dr. Brancati suggests that there may be the answer right in plain view, but no one has taken the time to really study the relationship between diabetes and cancer in any great detail.

The question still remains: Are they related or are they not?

Dr. Brancati and his team set out to analysis all the available data from reliable studies (23) in a Meta analysis, to investigate new cancer patients who already had diabetes when diagnosed with cancer. It is sad to say that the team of researchers found that cancer patients had a 1.4 greater chance of dying if they already had diabetes. The research showed the death rate was higher in many kinds of cancer; however, the ones that were actually statistically significant were breast cancer, endometrial and colorectal cancer. Dr. Brancati hopes to one day be able to reduce as much as 10 percent of cancers by finding the link between diabetes and cancer.

Other researchers seems to suggest that the link is out there, people with diabetes are at a greater risk of getting cancer because people with diabetes mellitus are usually obese. Obesity is a risk factor already for some forms of cancer.

Other reasons for the connection between diabetes and cancer could be because of:

• High blood glucose levels, which could affect the cancerous tumors perhaps even making them grow faster.
• Diabetes presents other health concerns such as kidney disease, and heart problems. These conditions may weaken the immune system and the ability for diabetics to withstand chemotherapy. Doctors have to find other less aggressive treatments, which may not be strong enough to fight off the cancer.
• People with diabetes already have a weakened immune system as it is. Diabetic are susceptible to infections and may not survive surgery or other cancer treatment.

Since doctors are concentrating on the symptoms of diabetes, they may miss signs of cancer and therefore the cancer may be detected very late, losing the advantages of early diagnosis and cure.

The reverse may also hold true, the doctors are focusing on the cancer and neglecting the diabetes, which may also affect the outcome of cancer deaths among people diagnosed with diabetes mellitus.

There is also the possibility that there really is no relation between the two diseases except that diabetics are prone to all kinds of diseases and their mortality rate is higher than non-diabetics.

Depression also affects the outcome of recovery from a serous illness and anywhere from 10 to 40 percent of individuals who have been diagnosed with diabetes shows signs of severe episodes of depression. Depressed people will delay going for exams, treatments, and generally seeking help. They may even stop taking their medications.

The bottom line is that more research is needed before any real answers can be given to this question.

An overactive bladder can be due to a bladder infection, which is quite common in women as well. You may also have bladder abnormalities such as a small bladder, which cannot hold the amount of urine. You may have bladder muscle problems, or bladder nerve damage. It could also be due to drinking too much. For that if you are experiencing bedwetting only and not frequent urination during the day, you may simply need to limit the amount of liquid intake you’re consuming before bedtime. Try not to drink anything before bedtime and try not to drink too much for the two hours directly before bedtime.

Some medications will act as diuretics, and cause excessive urination. Also certain foods such as chocolate and beverages, which include caffeine as in coffee and teas or colas, can cause excessive urination.

However, you mentioned that you are obese. Have you been tested for diabetes mellitus? Often time bedwetting and or frequent urination can be one of the earliest signs of type 2 diabetes. Diabetics often feel thirsty and drink more often that the average person. As mentioned above this could be a reason for your bedwetting and or any excessive urination during the daytime as well.

Incontinence

Uncontrolled or involuntary urination is referred to as incontinence. Incontinence has several causes that could be due to urinary tract infections, and loss of bladder muscle tone. However, it can also be a symptom of type 2 diabetes due to high blood sugar levels. Elevated glucose levels will cause an increase in urine production, which will in turn overload the bladder. When this happens there will be spill over which is the involuntary release of urine. People will feel full and have an urgency to urinate. They may not make it to the washroom in time, and some or all of the urine will trickle out as the urine is released from the bladder before they reach the toilet. This situation is chronic and if left untreated, it posses an awkward situation for individuals at home, at work, or even in social situations.

Stress incontinence can happen when diabetics experience some kind of physical activity. It can happen during running, lifting objects, coughing, sneezing, and laughing. Some diabetic individuals are unable to detect when they have a full bladder and this too can be a reason for leakage. This condition is a result of impaired or faulty nerve sensation. It could be a reason for why you may be wetting the bed without noticing it and sleeping right through the problem.

Whatever the reason for you bedwetting you will need to see your doctor to determine the cause in order for him or her to prescribe the appropriate treatment. You may start with your regular doctor who will order a urine test and some blood tests. He may already suspect diabetes and order the blood tests for diabetes mellitus. He may have you consult with a diabetes specialist directly, and he may also have you consult with a bladder specialist to rule out all possible causes for your condition.

Whether or not you have type 2 diabetes people who are obese are at high risk for becoming diabetic. Diabetes mellitus is a common condition in the USA and approximately 24 million people suffer from it. Go to your doctor immediately do not postpone the visit. You need to get to the bottom of this problem and correct it as soon as possible.

Hypoglycemia

There is a serious concern for older diabetic patients who have a history of bouts of low glucose levels. It is now a concern that low blood sugar can affect the brain Elderly people who have type 2 diabetes and a history of hypoglycemia are at a greater risk for dementia. The Journal of the American Medical Association published this mega study, which examined 16,000 seniors with Type 2 diabetes. What they found was those seniors who were never hospitalized because of low blood sugar had a 10 percent chance of getting dementia. It went up to 45 percent if the diabetic seniors had one hospitalization because of low blood sugar and a whopping 160 percent after 3 or more hospitalizations.

Low blood sugar levels and the brain

When the blood glucose levels drop there will be impairment in brain functioning, especially memory and attention. When the blood glucose levels go really low and is left untreated for some time, this can lead to long-term damage. The area of the brain that is affected concerning attention and memory is the hippocampus.

A blood sugar crash can occur if you the diabetic eats too little or takes too much medication. In your father’s case you say that he doesn’t take his meds, perhaps he overcompensates by taking double and triple dosages when he does remember. Since you say he lives alone he may not be eating properly and missing meals as well.

He may even feel lighted headed or dizzy, and may experience a clammy feeling.

It is not uncommon for people with type 2 diabetes to experience memory loss even if their blood sugar levels are not low and since you do not know about your father’s condition we don’t know if his blood sugar levels are controlled. Whether his blood sugar levels are too high or two low it will affect the brain.

Since the possibly is there that your father may be experiencing early signs of dementia or Alzheimer or other conditions which affect memory, attention, and perhaps cognition, it is best to have him checked out.

If you can, you need to make a trip to your father’s home and have a talk with him, encourage him to take his medication and encourage him to see his diabetes specialist. He might tell you that he monitors his own sugar, which is a good thing, however it is still better to see the diabetes specialist and make sure that a professional is taking care of him.

You should make an appointment and go with him if you can, that way you can tell the doctor the symptoms you have been noticing. Your father’s doctor should be able to check for brain functioning using different psychological tests (he might refer your father to a specialist for that) to run the diagnostic tests.

Your father will need to eat properly, and a dietitian may be called in to help him plan his meals. He will also need to exercise as this too has been found to help restore natural brain functioning.

Another good thing might be to arrange with hospital to have a health care professional visit with your father on a weekly or by-weekly basis and see that he is taking care of himself.

Prevalence of oral disease in the general and diabetic populations

More than 50 percent of the American population has at least the early stages of gum disease. Some studies point to as much as 80 percent of adults having gum disease at one time or other within their lifetime. Gum disease can actually begin in childhood when children have diabetes or it can happen at any time in a person’s lifetime. It therefore is so important to watch the diabetic population very closely for sign of oral disease. Diabetics of all ages are at risk for oral cavity problems, because of their high sugar levels.

Types of Oral Problems

Diabetics are more likely to have tooth decay, periodontal disease (gum disease), infections, and salivary glands problems as stated by the Pennsylvania Dental Association.

How to make surgery safer for diabetes

When your wife visits her dentist she will need to let him or her know about her diabetes and her latest blood sugar reading so he or she will know first and foremost that she is diabetic and if her diabetes is under control before doing any work on her mouth.

What many people do not know is that a diabetic is at a greater risk for complications, during oral surgery, even from the use of lidocaine for a local anesthetic, or a simple tooth cleaning. If she takes insulin it is very important that she tell her dentist how much of a dosage she is taking and when was the last time she took her insulin treatment.

Diabetics have more sugar in the saliva in the mouth cavity and this situation creates more bacteria in the mouth. When there are more bacteria in the mouth, it presents a breeding ground of germs and these germs can and will attack the teeth creating tooth decay. These oral bacteria will also cause periodontal disease, because the immune system of the diabetic is compromised as it is. The high blood glucose levels in blood system will also affect the body’s ability to ward off infection.

How to detect possible gum disease

Brushing and flossing is necessary for good oral health and is extremely important for diabetics. There has been some suggestion that dentists can spot diabetes just from plaque and tartar found in the oral cavity. Diabetic patients tend to have more plaque than other people and if this plaque is not completely removed, over time it turns into tartar. In turn the tartar can lead to chronic infections in the mouth area.

Since having diabetes is a concern for teeth and gums she needs to check her teeth constantly and inform her dentist if she sees any redness in the gum area, tender or swollen gums, bleeding gums, or gums that seem to be receding from her teeth. Also she would want to take notice of a bad taste lingering in her mouth or chronic bad breath (halitosis). Look for teeth that are loose or separating as this too can be a sign of disease. Pus is also a warning that that there is a problem that needs to be looked after immediately. Pus can occur either between the teeth or in the gums, and if she presses on the gums and pus comes out she need to see a dentist immediately. Even a relatively simple thing as having teeth out of alignment may be a sign of early oral complications, If she sees any changes in her teeth or gums she should not wait she will need to make an appointment immediately. When her dentist knows of diabetic condition he or she will be the best judge to decide if oral surgery is safe or if there is an alternative way of dealing with her dental issues.