Is the elderly person's diabetes severe?

Written by Zhou Yan
Geriatrics
Updated on May 09, 2025
00:00
00:00

Elderly diabetes often begins in a concealed manner, lacking the typical symptoms of excessive drinking, eating, urination, and weight loss.

At the same time, it has many complications, such as diabetic peripheral neuropathy, diabetic retinopathy, diabetic nephropathy, and diabetic cardiopathy, making its manifestations more diverse and extensive.

In addition, it can be complicated by infections, ketoacidosis, and hyperosmolar hyperglycemic syndrome, both of which have very high mortality rates.

Fourthly, diabetes often coexists with multiple chronic diseases in the elderly, including angina, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and heart failure, thus increasing the risk associated with polypharmacy.

Fifthly, hypoglycemia can easily occur and is difficult to diagnose and treat promptly, often leading to severe adverse events such as falls and cardiovascular incidents.

Therefore, we should pay more attention to diabetes in elderly individuals, managing it more thoroughly to enable a happier life in their later years.

Other Voices

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Wang Shuai
Urology
50sec home-news-image

Can frequent urination be diabetes?

If the amount of urine increases, the first thing to consider is the possibility of diabetes. In this case, a routine urine test will reveal a significant increase in urinary glucose. If a blood test for blood glucose is performed, an increase in blood glucose will also be found. For this situation, it is necessary to go to the hospital's endocrinology department for hypoglycemic treatment in a timely manner. Secondly, diabetes insipidus should be considered, which also causes an increase in urine volume, and the patient will have obvious thirst. Routine urine tests find that blood sugar in the urine is not high, the specific gravity of urine will initially decrease, and the patient's daily urine output will exceed 2500 milliliters, even reaching more than 4000 milliliters.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Li Zheng
Nutrition Science
1min home-news-image

Can people with diabetes eat watermelon?

People with diabetes should avoid watermelon as it contains a high amount of sugar, which might exacerbate their condition and lead to complications, adversely affecting their health. Many cases of diabetes are associated with poor dietary habits, such as frequently consuming high-sugar and fried foods, which can lead to symptoms like excessive eating, drinking, urination, and weight loss. For those with mild symptoms, dietary therapy can help alleviate symptoms by adopting a low-salt and low-fat diet, coupled with aerobic exercises to aid recovery. If treatment results are not satisfactory, it may be necessary to take hypoglycemic drugs under a doctor's guidance. It is also important to develop a habit of regularly monitoring blood sugar levels to keep them within a normal range. During stable periods of the condition, choosing fruits with lower sugar content, such as figs, apples, or grapefruit, is advisable.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Li Hui Zhi
Endocrinology
51sec home-news-image

Diabetic foot prevention care

First of all, it's important to keep blood sugar under control. It's recommended that people with diabetes check their glycated hemoglobin every three months to see if their blood sugar levels meet the standards. Second, many patients suffer from diabetic foot due to severe diabetic peripheral neuropathy. Injuries such as stepping on a nail or accidental bumps may lead to infections. Therefore, it's suggested that patients with diabetes check their feet daily for any small wounds or ulcers, and if found, they should seek timely treatment from an endocrinology specialist. Third, using warm water for foot baths and treatments like local infrared lamp therapy are advised. It's important to ensure that the temperature is not too high, generally around 40 degrees Celsius, to avoid burning the skin.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Lin Xiang Dong
Endocrinology
43sec home-news-image

How to reduce sugar in a diabetic diet?

Dietary control is the most important method of treatment for diabetes. If dietary control is improper, all hypoglycemic drugs, including insulin, will not be very effective, and the focus of dietary management in diabetes is to control the intake of carbohydrates. Our Chinese diet is primarily based on carbohydrates like rice. Mainly, we control the amount of rice consumed, with each meal (lunch and dinner) consisting of about 100 to 200 grams of rice. This is complemented by plenty of vegetables and a certain amount of lean meat to enhance satiety. By controlling the intake of carbohydrates in our daily lives, blood sugar levels can drop significantly.

doctor image
home-news-image
Written by Li Hui Zhi
Endocrinology
41sec home-news-image

Early symptoms of type 2 diabetes

The typical symptoms of type 2 diabetes are referred to as "three excesses and one deficiency." The three excesses include excessive thirst and dry mouth, increased appetite with frequent hunger, and increased urination. The one deficiency refers to weight loss; these are the more typical symptoms. Some patients might often find out about their elevated blood sugar during routine health checks at work. Others may seek medical advice due to issues like skin itchiness or wounds that heal poorly after injury. Some might mainly experience numbness in their hands and feet, or blurred vision among other symptoms.