Type 2 Diabetes: Recently Diagnosed: What Happens

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What Happens

Following your prescribed treatment for type 2 diabetes will help keep your blood sugar levels within a normal or near-normal range and prevent or delay the progression of complications. With adequate treatment, you can live a long, healthy life.

Treatment involves eating a balanced diet that limits and spreads carbohydrate throughout the day to avoid sudden peaks in blood sugar, getting regular exercise, monitoring your blood sugar, and possibly taking oral medicines or insulin. For more information, see the Treatment Overview section of this topic.

You may experience times when your blood sugar level is above a normal or near-normal range. Recognize and treat high blood sugar early to prevent:

• A life-threatening situation called a hyperosmolar state that develops when the blood sugar level reaches 400 to 500 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or higher. The risk for this condition starts to increase if your blood sugar stays above 200 mg/dL. Most often, a hyperosmolar state develops when a person with type 2 diabetes has an illness, such as a severe case of the flu or other infection; has a heart attack; is not drinking enough liquids and becomes dehydrated; or takes medicines that increase fluid loss (diuretics) or affect mental alertness, especially if the person is not drinking enough liquids to replace the lost fluids.
• Long-term complications from diabetes. Persistent high blood sugar can damage the eyes (diabetic retinopathy ), kidneys (diabetic nephropathy), nerves (diabetic neuropathy), heart (leading to heart attacks), and blood vessels (leading to strokes, peripheral arterial disease, and possibly amputation). Because you may have had higher-than-normal blood sugar levels (prediabetes) for years, you may already have one or more of these complications.

Last updated:	June 16, 2008
Author:	Caroline Rea, RN, BS, MS
Reviewed By:	Caroline S. Rhoads, MD - Internal Medicine, Matthew I. Kim, MD - Endocrinology & Metabolism
Editors:	Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA, Pat Truman, MATC