Many people have diabetes and don't even know it, especially because in the early stages there are very few symptoms. According to the Mayo Clinic website, however, undiagnosed and therefore untreated diabetes can damage your heart, blood vessels, nerves, eyes, and kidneys. Patients with undiagnosed diabetes have consistently elevated blood sugar levels, which can lead to many complications.
Cardiovascular Complications
According to MentalHelp.net, the high levels of insulin that are also found in diabetics damage blood vessels by promoting the development of plaques that make blood vessels harden. This leads to less flexible arteries, higher blood pressure and cardiovascular complications, such as strokes, aneurysms, heart failure and heart attacks.
Neuropathy
Nerves are supplied by small blood vessels called capillaries. As the website Total Diabetes Control explains, the walls of these vessels can be damaged by excess blood sugar. This prevents the nerves from receiving proper nutrients and they can be damaged, a condition known as neuropathy. This process especially harms the nerves in the legs. Patients experience tingling, numbness, and a type of burning pain that starts in the fingers or toes and gradually extends upward. The nerves that control digestion can also be damaged, causing nausea, vomiting, constipation, or diarrhea.
Kidney Damage
The high blood sugar levels present in diabetes can cause damage to the millions of tiny capillary clusters present in the kidney, according to the Mayo Clinic website. Just as nerve cells are damaged when the nearby capillaries are damaged, so are kidney cells, leading to kidney damage and possible severe kidney failure. In some cases, you may need dialysis or even a kidney transplant.
Eye Damage
Capillaries that are damaged by high blood sugar cause damage in turn to the nerves in the retina, or the back portion of the eye. This damage is called diabetic retinopathy. According to MentalHelp, this damage results in decreased vision or blindness. In fact, for people under the age of 65, diabetes is the most common cause of acquired blindness.
Skin Conditions
The Mayo Clinic website states that untreated diabetes may make patients more susceptible to certain skin problems, such as fungal and bacterial infections. Patients may also experience gingivitis if they have diabetes as well as poor dental hygiene. This susceptibility to infection has been linked to the hypothesis that diabetes impairs the immune response.
Joint and Foot Problems
Diabetes, according to MentalHelp, can cause poor blood flow and nerve damage in the feet of patients. This leads to a decreased sense of touch in the extremity, which can lead in turn to a situation where feet are easily damaged and slower to heal, as well. Damage to joints and nonhealing ulcers are common. If left untreated, these conditions can lead to amputation. Each year 86,000 people require amputation of a foot or leg due to complications of diabetes.
Alzheimer's Disease
The Mayo Clinic website reports that diabetes may increase the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. This neurological degeneration might be related to the fact that the capillary damage of diabetes blocks flow of blood to the brain, or it might be that high levels of insulin lead to brain inflammation.
