Diabetes and Smoking - QUIT NOW!!

[notsmokinjo]

November 14 is World Diabetes Day and if you're looking for yet another of the 50 million already available excuses to quit and stay quit why not quit to help prevent yourself developing type 2 diabetes or for those of you who already have diabetes... quit now to improve your diabetes management.

 

We now know that smoking causes type 2 diabetes. In fact, smokers are 30–40% more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than nonsmokers. And people with diabetes who smoke are more likely than nonsmokers to have trouble with insulin dosing and with controlling their disease.The more cigarettes you smoke, the higher your risk for type 2 diabetes. No matter what type of diabetes you have, smoking makes your diabetes harder to control. If you have diabetes and you smoke, you are more likely to have serious health problems from diabetes. Smokers with diabetes have higher risks for serious complications, including:

• Heart and kidney disease
• Poor blood flow in the legs and feet that can lead to infections, ulcers, and possible amputation (removal of a body part by surgery, such as toes or feet)
• Retinopathy (an eye disease that can cause blindness)
• Peripheral neuropathy (damaged nerves to the arms and legs that causes numbness, pain, weakness, and poor coordination)

 

If you are a smoker with diabetes, quitting smoking will benefit your health right away. People with diabetes who quit have better control of their blood sugar levels.