Serious complications can develop after many years of living with high blood sugar levels. The risk of these complications can be reduced or completely eliminated by constantly striving for the best possible diabetes control.

What are they?

There are many potential complications of poorly controlled diabetes, affecting many organs of the body and sometimes leading to serious long-term health problems. The one thing that is true for everybody is that the better they control their blood sugar, blood pressure and lipids, the lower will be their risk of suffering these complications. It really is that simple.

Which parts of my body might be affected?

If your blood sugar is frequently higher than your target range, you will be at an increased risk of developing heart and circulatory diseases. This is because the high sugar accelerates some of the processes involved in artery disease. If you smoke, have high blood pressure or high cholesterol levels, your risks are increased even further. Damage to small blood vessels can cause complications in other parts of your body including the kidneys, nerves, feet, eyes, teeth and gums. Damage to the nerves, in turn, can cause other complications. It is therefore important to control your blood sugar and address all other risk factors in order to stay as healthy as possible for as long as possible.