12 Complications of Diabetes

Medically Reviewed By William C. Lloyd III, MD, FACS

Written By Cindy Kuzma on September 10, 2021

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  12 Complications of Diabetes

  From your eyes down to your toes and from your skin inward to your organs, diabetes can cause health problems all over your body. Keeping your blood sugar under control can prevent many of these complications. Some treatments may also reduce their effects, especially if you catch the problems early. 
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  1. Autonomic Neuropathy

  High blood sugar can damage the nerves that control your body’s internal processes. As a result, your digestive, urinary, and cardiovascular systems may not work properly. You may sweat more than before or stop sweating altogether. And your sexual organs may be affected, making intimacy difficult.
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  2. Peripheral Neuropathy

  Diabetes-related damage often strikes the nerves that relay signals between your brain and your body. As a result, your hands and feet may feel tingly or numb. Or you may have severe pain at the slightest touch, or feel unexplained sensations of touch, heat, or cold.
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  3. Heart Disease and Stroke

  People with diabetes are twice as likely as those without diabetes to have heart disease or a stroke. They are also prone to high blood pressure. Cardiovascular events may occur at younger ages and are more likely to be severe or fatal in diabetics.
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  4. Diabetic Retinopathy

  Diabetes can damage your retina, the light-sensitive layer at the back of your eye. Your blood vessels may swell and leak fluid, severely impairing your vision. Without treatment, abnormal new retinal blood vessels form, causing more severe and sometimes permanent harm to your sight. Regular eye exams can detect retinopathy early, when it’s most treatable.
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  5. Foot Ulcers

  Cuts, blisters, calluses, and sores from ill-fitting shoes may seem like minor annoyances. But if you have diabetes, nerve damage and poor blood flow slow healing in your feet. As a result, chronic sores called ulcers can develop. In severe cases, your foot or leg may require amputation.
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  6. Hearing Loss

  Sound travels to your brain through tiny nerves in your ears. Uncontrolled blood sugar damages the small vessels that support these structures. As a result, hearing loss occurs twice as often in people with diabetes and 30 percent more often in people with pre-diabetes compared to people with normal blood sugar.
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  7. Gum Disease

  Severe gum disease, called periodontitis, causes your gums to pull away from your teeth. The resulting pockets may fill with germs and pus, further harming your health and potentially requiring surgery. High blood sugar slows healing and feeds the bacteria that cause gum infections.
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  8. Other Oral Problems

  Diabetes dries out your mouth, triggering soreness, infections, ulcers, and cavities. You’re also at greater risk for thrush. This yeast infection causes white patches in your mouth and may spread to your esophagus, making swallowing difficult or painful. You’ll need treatment with antifungal medications.
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  9. Glaucoma

  This serious, vision-stealing eye disease occurs when pressure builds up in the eye. Over time, the pressure irreversibly damages your retina and optic nerve. People with diabetes are 40 percent more likely to develop glaucoma than people without. Your risk also increases with age.
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  10. Gastroparesis

  Nerve damage can strike your stomach and intestines, slowing down or stopping your digestive process. Symptoms such as heartburn, nausea, vomiting, and bloating often follow. What’s more, this delay in digestion can cause your blood sugar to rise and fall sharply. Taking medications or eating smaller, more frequent meals can help.
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  11. Kidney Disease

  Each kidney contains about 1 million tiny filters called glomeruli. Over a period of years, high blood sugar destroys these structures, decreasing your kidneys’ ability to remove toxins from your blood. Diabetes accounts for nearly half of all new cases of kidney failure. High blood pressure further increases your risk.
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  12. Skin Complications

  Diabetes can leave your skin dry, itchy, cracked, or infected. And several skin diseases occur almost exclusively in people with diabetes. One, diabetic dermopathy, causes light brown scaly patches to form, usually on your legs. Another, acanthosis nigricans, leaves dark brown velvety spots on your neck, armpits, or groin.

12 Complications of Diabetes

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