Diabetes

Favia Primary Care and Favia MediSpa

Primary Care Physicians & MediSpa located in Algonquin, IL & Crystal Lake, IL

An estimated 34.2 million Americans have diabetes and need help managing their condition. At Favia Primary Care, family medicine specialists Philip Favia, MD, Haydee Cantu-Manley, MD, and the other board-certified providers offer comprehensive diabetes management services. They provide in-office diabetes testing and customized treatment plans using lifestyle changes, diet improvements, and medications to prevent the complications diabetes can cause. Call the office in Algonquin or Crystal Lake, Illinois, to schedule a diabetes consultation today or book an appointment online.

Diabetes Q & A

diabetes check

What is diabetes?

Diabetes is a chronic condition that affects how your body processes the sugar you get from your diet. The hormone insulin helps convert sugar into the energy you need to function. When you have diabetes, this process doesn’t work properly and results in high blood sugar levels in your blood.

There are several types of diabetes:

Type 1 diabetes

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that often develops in childhood but can also start in adulthood. This condition causes your body to attack your pancreas, the organ that makes insulin, mistakenly, and you don’t produce the insulin you need to maintain healthy blood sugar levels.

Type 2 diabetes

When you have Type 2 diabetes, your body doesn’t produce enough insulin or can’t properly use the insulin it makes to control blood sugar levels. This condition is often the result of poor lifestyle choices, including a lack of exercise and an unhealthy diet.

Prediabetes

Prediabetes is a condition that describes abnormally high blood sugar levels that aren’t high enough to qualify as diabetes. Having this condition increases your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.

Gestational diabetes

Gestational diabetes describes high blood sugar levels that develop during pregnancy. Typically, this condition resolves after the birth of a child, but having it can also increase your risk for Type 2 diabetes later.

When should I seek treatment for diabetes?

If you have a family history of diabetes, you should get regular blood tests to evaluate your blood sugar levels. This helps the providers identify warning signs of the disease in the earliest stage.

You should also schedule a diagnostic evaluation for diabetes at Favia Primary Care if you experience symptoms of diabetes, such as:

Increased thirst
Extreme hunger
Frequent urination
Unexplained weight loss

If left untreated, diabetes can lead to blurry vision and blindness, nerve damage, and cardiovascular disease.

Favia Primary Care offers in-office blood tests to determine if your symptoms relate to diabetes. The physicians customize a treatment plan to help you manage your condition over the longer term.

How is diabetes treated?

Treatment for Type 1 diabetes involves daily insulin injections to control your blood sugar levels. You also need to closely monitor your blood sugar levels several times a day with at-home tests.

To manage Type 2 diabetes and prediabetes, the providers may initially recommend lifestyle and diet changes to help lower your blood sugar levels. If these modifications aren’t enough, you may also need medications.

Routine blood work in-office is also important to ensure your treatment is working and that your diabetes is well-controlled.

Call the Favia Primary Care office nearest you today to schedule a diabetes evaluation or book an appointment online.