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March 13, 2025 Imagine this: you are tired all day, constantly thirsty and need to go to the bathroom every so often. Maybe you think you just had a bad night or it was a busy week. But what if this persists? These could be symptoms of diabetes mellitus, better known as diabetes or diabetes.
What is diabetes mellitus?
Diabetes is a condition in which blood sugar levels are too high. This is because the body does not make enough or any insulin, or the cells do not respond properly to insulin. Insulin is the hormone that helps transport sugar from the blood to the cells, where it is used as energy. Without this balance, fluctuations in blood sugar levels can occur, causing a variety of symptoms.
What types are there?
Diabetes has two main types, each of which arises and is treated differently.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks the cells in the pancreas that make insulin. As a result, insulin production stops completely. People with this type of diabetes must inject insulin daily or use an insulin pump to control their blood sugar. This type often develops at a young age.
Type 2 diabetes is much more common and usually diagnosed later in life, although more and more young people are getting it. One reason for this is that we have more and more obese people in the Netherlands. In this type, the body still makes insulin, but the cells do not respond to it properly. This is called insulin resistance. Blood sugar levels remain elevated, and over time the pancreas may produce less and less insulin, making the situation worse. It is good to mention that in this form of diabetes, the patient's lifestyle can cause a person to have healthy blood sugar levels for a long time without medication. This is called remission, but this does not work for everyone or it only works for a while.
Hypo or hyper?
With diabetes, fluctuations in blood sugar can occur. This can lead to two situations: blood sugar that is too high (hyperglycemia) or blood sugar that is too low (hypoglycemia).
A hyper, or too high blood sugar, can cause symptoms such as fatigue, excessive thirst, blurred vision, nausea and frequent urination. In severe cases, a person may even become unconscious.
A hypo, or too low blood sugar, produces other symptoms. A person may become dizzy, sweat, have palpitations and feel very tired. Again, unconsciousness can occur if not noticed in time.
So the difference between a hyper and a hypo is important to recognize. In both situations, a person can become unconscious, but the other symptoms give a clue as to the cause.
What to do in the event of a hypo or hyper?
Thus, in a hypo, a person has too little glucose in the blood. This person may become tired, start sweating and/or become dizzy. It is important for this person to get something of sugar as soon as possible. This can be done through dextro or soda or, if necessary, something to eat. Just know that the latter option has a less rapid effect. It takes longer for these sugars to become available and enter the blood.
In hyper, a person has too much sugar in the blood. This person may become very thirsty, urinate a lot and/or have blurred vision. The key is for this person to get rid of sugar as quickly as possible; this can be done by drinking a lot of water, for example. Note, it is important that this is not a sweet sugary drink. A lot of exercise can also help, this causes the muscles to burn off the excess sugar. Some patients inject insulin; if this is the case, fast-acting insulin must be injected at that time. Long-acting insulin works too slowly during a hyper. Often the patient has gone over with their doctor or nurse how much extra insulin to inject.
Do you want to be well prepared for various medical emergencies and learn how to act in life-saving ways? Then take our first aid and adult life-saving course.
In conclusion
Diabetes is a complex disease, but with the right knowledge and approach, you can minimize complications. Whether you have diabetes yourself or know someone with diabetes, it is useful to know what to do in case of a hypo or hyper. That way you can intervene in time and avoid unpleasant situations!