ANSWER:
Poor food choices lead up to Blindness , Neuropathy , kidney failure , amputations, heart disease ,feeling sick all the time and dying before their time.

1/3 of type1 diabetics die before age 55.

Type 2 diabetics lose up to 13 years of normal life span.
Complications or Sequelae of Diabetes

Sometimes a complication of diabetes may give a clue to the presence of the disease. The principle complications or sequelae associated with diabetes are retinopathy, neuropathy, nephropathy and arteriosclerosis. Whether these are the unavoidable consequences of the diabetic state over time or whether they may be influenced by controlling the diabetes through aggressive monitoring, treatment and life-style management, including diet and supplements, remains a central topic.

One of the largest, most comprehensive diabetes studies conducted to date2 showed that keeping blood sugar levels as close to normal as possible through aggressive management slows the onset and progression of eye, kidney and nerve diseases caused by diabetes. In fact it demonstrated that any sustained lowering of blood sugar helps, even if the person has a history of poor control.

Specifically it found that lowering and maintaining more constant blood sugar levels reduced the risk of eye disease by 76%, kidney disease by 50%, nerve disease by 60% and cardiovascular disease by 35%.

Since the discovery of insulin nearly 70 years ago, the patterns of morbidity from diabetes have changed. Where the major causes of death were ketoacidosis and infection, they are now the microvascular and cardiovascular complications of diabetes (renal failure and myocardial infarction).

These complications are responsible for a reduction in the life expectancy of a newly diagnosed insulin dependent diabetic by about one-third. The basis of managing diabetes in the 90 s is an improvement in the life-style of the diabetic and prevention of complications responsible for morbidity and mortality in diabetes.

Neuropathy (nerve disease)

Diabetic neuropathies are among the most frequent complication of long-term diabetes. It is estimated that 60% to 70% of diabetics have mild to severe forms of nervous system damage. The femoral nerve is commonly involved giving rise to symptoms in the legs and feet. Pain is the chief symptom and tends to worsen at night when the person is at rest. It is usually relieved by activity and aggravated by cold. Paraesthesias are a common accompaniment of the pain. Cramping, tenderness and muscle weakness also occur but atrophy is rare. Advanced femoral nerve disease is a major contributing cause of lower extremity amputations. Nerves in the arms, abdomen and back may also be affected. Symptoms may include impaired heart function, slowed digestion, reduced or absent perspiration, severe oedema, carpal tunnel syndrome, alternating bouts of diarrhoea and constipation, bladder atony, urinary and faecal incontinence and impotence.

With respect to sexual impotence, diabetes is probably the single most common disease associated with erectile failure (termed neurogenic impotence in the diabetic). Since diabetes is a metabolic disease with vascular and nervous system complications and an erection involves all levels of the nervous system from the brain to the peripheral nerves, lesions anywhere along the path may be responsible for erectile failure. It has been estimated that close to 50% of diabetic males have some degree of erectile dysfunction. Neuropathies usually improve with the control of the diabetes. Severe or chronic changes may require several weeks or months to show maximum improvement.

Retinopathy (eye disease)

Changes occurring in the eye which are distinctive of diabetes involve the narrowing, hardening, bulging, haemorrhaging or severing of the veins and capillaries of the retina. This is a serious complication known as retinopathy and may lead to loss of vision. Visual changes in the earlier stages may include diminished vision, contraction of the visual field, changes in the size of objects or photophobia. In the more advanced stage, termed ‘proliferative retinopathy’, haemorrhages, retinal detachment and other serious forms of deterioration are observed. When the disease progresses to this late stage total blindness may occur.

It usually takes between 10-13 years for diabetic retinopathy to develop and it is present in some degree in most diabetics who have had the disease for 20 years. In only about half of the diabetics who develop it however, is vision markedly impaired and blindness occurs in only about 6%. Still, diabetes is the leading cause of blindness in adults 20 to 74 years old and is estimated to cause from 12,000 to 24,000 new cases each year. Two other complications of diabetes, cataracts and glaucoma, can also lead to loss of vision

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