Are you at Risk?

From Sioux Lookout Diabetes (http://www.slktdiab.ca/)

Risk Factors

• Hip/waist ratio of over 1.0 in men and over 0.8 in women (this can be checked by your health professional).
• Have a parent, brother or sister with diabetes
• Over 40 years of age
• You had diabetes during pregnancy
• You delivered a baby over 9 lbs.
• Overweight
• Member of an ethnic group, i.e. First Nations, Hispanic, Asian, Finnish...
• You have high blood cholesterol, heart disease or high blood pressure
• Have trouble getting and maintaining an erection
• Have increased stress

Signs and Symptoms

• Excessive thirst
• Weight change
• Frequent urination
• Blurred vision
• Change in appetite
• Fatigue
• Irritability
• Itchy skin
• Tingling in hand, legs or feet
• Frequent or slow healing of cuts or infections in the body
• Sweet smelling breath
• Severe abdominal pain
• Nausea or vomiting

Diabetes is diagnosed using a blood test to determine the amount of sugar/glucose in your blood. These tests are:

· Fasting Blood Glucose Test by the laboratory before breakfast

· Casual Blood Glucose Test by the laboratory, done anytime of the  day

· Oral Glucose Tolerance Test which is done by the laboratory. You will drink a special sweetened drink. A blood sample is taken before drinking and 2 hours after taking the drink