Natural Progression of Type 2 Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes is not a stable disease—it is progressive in nature

Type 2 diabetes is not a stable disease—it is progressive in nature. In fact, by the time someone is diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, many changes may have already occurred in the body, including the start of heart disease. And these changes continue over the years, potentially making the complications of diabetes more difficult to control. For this reason, you need to know what changes to expect when you have type 2 diabetes. This article will help you and your health care provider manage your diabetes every step of the way.

A LONG TIME COMING

Experts today believe that people who are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes have had blood glucose levels that were high enough to diagnose diabetes, on average, seven to 10 years earlier. That’s bad news because high blood glucose levels for so long can cause damage to the heart, kidneys, eyes and nerves. So in reality, people with “newly” diagnosed type 2 diabetes may already have diabetes-related problems.

But what happens during this period leading up to a diagnosis of diabetes? Initially, the pancreas produces the correct amount of insulin the body needs to keep blood glucose levels where they ought to be. However, at some point, cells begin to resist this naturally occurring insulin. This is referred to as “insulin resistance,” meaning the cells have a hard time using the insulin the body produces. The pancreas, in turn, receives a message that even more insulin is needed, and it begins to produce more than before to overcome this resistance. At some point, the pancreas is not able to keep up and blood glucose levels begin to increase.

This is what’s known as pre-diabetes. Pre-diabetes means that blood glucose levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be classified as diabetes. It is in this stage that 10 to 20 pounds of weight loss and 30 minutes of activity five days a week have been shown to prevent and/or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes. These steps also can improve blood fats and lower blood pressure, which can help to reduce the risk of heart disease. It is in this phase that the pancreas starts to over-produce insulin at a rapid rate.

The pancreas can not continue working overtime indefinitely and eventually begins to wear out. At this point, blood glucose levels rise high enough to be classified as diabetes. It is thought that by the time most people are diagnosed with diabetes, they already have lost 50 percent of their ability to make insulin in their pancreas. So, in addition to a healthy eating and physical activity plan, most people need to take one or two types of diabetes medications: one pill to increase the amount of insulin the pancreas makes and the other pill to decrease the body’s resistance to insulin. Because the ability of the pancreas can continue to decline, many people with type 2 diabetes may eventually need to take insulin to control their diabetes.

BLOOD GLUCOSE CONTROL IS YOUR GOAL

As your type 2 diabetes progresses, you and your health care providers need to work together to keep your blood glucose levels in your target range. This means matching the right food, physical activity and diabetes medicine plan to your body’s dwindling supply of insulin. It is likely that you may need to take insulin to control your blood glucose levels. So, do not put off using insulin to control your blood glucose levels. When your health care providers suggest you need insulin, you should take the suggestion seriously.

KEYS TO HEART HEALTH

It also is critical to control abnormal blood fat and high blood pressure levels, as they often go hand in hand with rising blood glucose levels. Although following a healthy eating and physical activity plan can help your blood fat and blood pressure levels, most people need medication, as well. Make sure you and your health care providers match these medications to hit your target blood lipid and blood pressure goals.

IMPORTANT NUMBERS FOR YOUR HEALTH

Test Goal
A1c <7%
Blood Glucose
Fasting <90-130 mg/dL
2 hours after <180 mg/dL
start of meal
Blood Pressure <130/80
Cholesterol (Blood Fats)
Total Cholesterol <200 mg/dL
LDL (bad) <100 mg/dL
HDL (good) >40 mg/dL
Triglycerides <150 mg/dL

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Constance Brown-Riggs, MSEd, RD, CDE, CDN—an award-winning RD, certified diabetes educator, and past national spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, is the author of The African American Guide to Living Well With Diabetes, which received the Favorably Reviewed designation from the American Association of Diabetes Educators, and Eating Soulfully and Healthfully with Diabetes.

Dr. Lori Shemek, PhD, CNC, CLC, the best-selling author of “Fire-Up Your Fat Burn! and leading health and weight loss expert, is also known as “The Inflammation Terminator.” She has made it her mission to educate the public on the toxic effects of certain foods and lifestyle choices and how they create inflammation in the body. She is a leading authority on inflammation and its role in weight loss, preventing disease and optimizing health.

Rebecca Bitzer – MS, RD/LD, CEDRD is an award-winning Registered Dietitian, writer, speaker, blogger, and REBEL Dietitian business owner. Rebecca and her team of six Registered Dietitians have counseled thousands of clients struggling with diabetes for over twenty-five years. They work closely with each other along with internists, endocrinologists, therapists, and families.

Maureen Sullivan – RN, CDE has worked for many years as a Registered Nurse, most of them in emergency and trauma services. She is a Certified Emergency Nurse, Certified Diabetes Educator, and the former manager of a hospital stroke program. Maureen’s wealth of knowledge, passion for nursing and education, and ability to engage people makes her an excellent teacher and a captivating lecturer. Recently, Maureen has been concentrating on writing, speaking and teaching, as well as working on her award-winning weekly podcast, “The Health and Humor Show.”

Lauren Harris-Pincus, MS, RDN is a nutrition communications specialist, registered dietitian in private practice, social media consultant, speaker, spokesperson and corporate consultant. She is currently the owner of Nutrition Starring YOU, LLC and www.NutritionStarringYOU.com. Lauren strongly believes that we should “Think Healthy, not Skinny”, and “EveryBODY is unique, your diet should be too”. Lauren was co-host of the Family Food Experts Kitchen radio show, available for listening on iHeart Radio and iTunes. Also known as one of the “NutritionBabes”, Lauren co-founded NutritionBabes.com, a popular Health and Wellness website in 2009. NutritionBabes.com was voted one of Healthline’s Top 100 Health Blogs in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

Mark Heyman, PhD, CDE is a clinical health psychologist and the director of the Center for Diabetes and Mental Health (CDMH). In addition to treating patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes, Dr. Heyman provides training for health care providers on how to identify and address the emotional and behavioral aspects of diabetes in their patients. He also works with pharmaceutical and medical device companies to help them understand these issues and incorporate this information into their sales, marketing, and patient education materials. He is particularly interested in empirically supported behavioral interventions that promote behavior change and improve physical and mental health in people with diabetes.

Katie Ferraro, MPH, RD, CDE is a nationally-recognized registered dietitian, certified diabetes educator and author with an expertise in nutrition communications and curriculum development. She is the co-author of “Diet Therapy in Advanced Practice Nursing” (McGraw Hill, 2014) and an Assistant Clinical Professor of Nutrition at the University of California San Francisco and University of San Diego’s graduate schools of nursing.

Dr. Beverly S. Adler, PhD, CDE (aka “Dr. Bev”) is a clinical psychologist and certified diabetes educator, author and speaker. She specializes treating the emotional issues of people with diabetes. In her private practice, she provides individual, family and/or group therapy utilizing a cognitive behavior therapy orientation, combined with a spiritual approach. Her goal is to empower her patients to manage their diabetes.

Dr. Bev is the author of two self-help diabetes books. She has written numerous articles which are published in print and online – always focused on diabetes from the emotional perspective. She also speaks to audiences of people living with diabetes, as well as, to audiences of healthcare professionals and diabetes educators. Dr. Bev, herself, has been living successfully with type 1 diabetes for 40+ years.

In August 2016, Dr. Bev was honored to receive the “CDE Entrepreneur of the Year” Award from her Metropolitan NY Association of Diabetes Educators.

Jill Weisenberger, MS, RDN, CDE, FAND is an internationally recognized nutrition and diabetes expert with more than two decades experience. Through writing, speaking and one-on-one coaching, Jill empowers people to grab control of their health. She has worked as both a nutrition counselor and a diabetes educator in the hospital and research settings, and now in private practice in Newport News, VA. Jill is known for her practical approach and caring attitude. Her no-nonsense strategies to eating well include foods that both taste good and are good for you.

Marlene Koch (pronounced ‘cook’) is a nationally recognized nutritionist, popular TV personality and New York Times bestselling author. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from UCLA with a Bachelor’s degree in Nutritional Science. She is a registered dietitian and one of a select group of dietitians to hold an advanced certificate in Child and Adolescent Weight Management from the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics.

Marlene has taught professional chefs from the American Culinary Federation the principles of healthy cooking and eating. She has been adjunct Nutrition professor and cooking instructor for Columbus State College and the Columbus State Culinary Academy, and she is a nationally recognized expert in weight loss, diabetes, child and adolescent nutrition, and sugar substitutes.

Marlene has sold over one million cookbooks, and is a regular guest on QVC.

Barbara Ruhs – MS, RDN is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and owner of Neighborhood Nutrition LLC, a consulting firm focused on providing solutions to help food companies and supermarkets improve consumer health & wellness. She’s a former supermarket dietitian and has run a successful business for 17 years. A leader in the field of nutrition, her mission is to help people by impacting the way food is produced, marketed and sold. She’s a strong advocate for supermarket dietitians and believes the retail food industry has the greatest potential to impact public health.

Cheryl Orlansky has over 25 years of experience in health promotion and chronic disease prevention and management. Her first career as a registered dental hygienist led her towards a path of wellness and nutrition! Her expertise is in diabetes, weight management and cardiovascular disease for individuals and groups. She works in a large private practice including endocrinology, internal medicine, rheumatology, neurology and sleep medicine. She is an award winning dietitian with current leadership positions in state and local dietetics organizations.

She has been interviewed and quoted in media outlets for WebMD, Atlanta Sports and Fitness, Georgia Public Broadcasting, and the Atlanta Journal and Constitution. She has partnered with V-103 Radio to lead supermarket tours as part of a community outreach during National Nutrition Month.

Cheryl helps her clients reach balance through lifestyle choices: cooking and eating, activity and purpose in life.

Jackie Newgent, RDN, CDN, is a registered dietitian nutritionist and classically-trained chef. With a passion for helping people (including her father) with diabetes, she’s author of The With or Without Meat Cookbook: The Flexible Approach to Flavorful Diabetes Cooking and the award-winning The All‐Natural Diabetes Cookbook, both published by the American Diabetes Association. Jackie is also author of 1,000 Low-Calorie Recipes and Big Green Cookbook. Her next book, The All-Natural Diabetes Cookbook—2nd Edition, was published in 2015.

Nutritionist Rania Batayneh, MPH is the author of the best-selling book, The One One One Diet. She holds a master’s degree in public health nutrition from the University of Michigan School of Public Health and is also a Wellcoaches Certified Health and Wellness Coach endorsed by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM).

OmnichannelHealth Media, publisher of DiabetesDigest.com, does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. See additional information.