In almost all cases, heart diseases like myocardial infarction and angina pectoris are an inevitable consequence of diabetes along with its other multitude of diseases. Most of the diabetic people die by silent heart attack. Almost 32% of people who have diabetes are also subjected to various heart diseases. Well, in medicine, it is not always a given that a single disease or condition will result in the sequelae associated with the particular disease. Keeping in mind the same statement, diabetes is not always a testament to heart disease. However, to avoid a condition, it is necessary to understand the pathophysiology of the disease.

How does diabetes cause heart disease?

Diabetes elevates the sugar levels in our body to an abnormal level, leading to the initiation of inflammatory cascades and increased oxidative stresses in the cellular environment. This causes endothelial dysfunction and platelet aggregation in vessels, leading to atherosclerosis. Atherosclerosis - the hardening of vessels - is the most common cause of heart disease, particularly myocardial infarction. Furthermore, diabetes also increases the chances of thrombus and embolus formation in the vessels, resulting in the occlusion of vessels, ultimately disrupting the blood supply and normal pumping of blood in the heart.

Now, the question here arises: how to halt this cascade of diabetes leading to heart diseases?

Methods to avoid heart diseases in diabetic patients:

As the famous wording says, Prevention is better than cure; the deleterious effects of diabetes can be avoided by following a particular set of lifestyle and dietary modifications. Several small everyday changes can result in miraculous outcomes, shielding the body against the detrimental effects of diabetes. Some of these changes that form the cornerstone to prevent this health hazard are given below.

Proper Medication:

The most efficient way to avoid the harmful effects of diabetes is to eliminate the root cause, i.e., the increased blood glucose level. Taking the medications to regulate the blood sugar levels as prescribed by the physician significantly reduces and almost eliminates the risk of heart disease in diabetic patients.

2. Exercise:

Exercise is an all-rounder cure for all the diseases that are known to humankind. It is found that exercises like walking, cycling, yoga, and other aerobic exercises decrease the insulin resistance of the cells, reduce the obesity associated with diabetes, reduce the levels of triglycerides, and the list is never-ending. The conclusion in this case comes out as regulated blood glucose levels and decreased risk of atherosclerosis, ultimately reducing the risk of heart diseases.

Weight loss:

As mentioned earlier, obesity is actively linked to diabetes and hypertension. Obesity is responsible for inflammatory changes in the body and thus contributes to insulin resistance, ultimately increasing the risk of heart disease. Managing obesity through exercise, dietary modifications, and lifestyle changes can do wonders by regulating blood glucose levels and reducing the risk of atherosclerosis and heart diseases.

Stress management:

Stress is an important foundational factor in almost all diseases. Stress increases the levels of cortisol hormone released by the adrenal gland for a long period. This raised level of cortisol in the body causes cells to release glucose, causing increased blood glucose concentration and also causes hypertension. Managing stress through various breathing exercises and yoga can eradicate all the mentioned detrimental cascades and thereby remove the risk of heart disease in diabetic patients.

Management of hypertension:

Diabetes inevitably results in hypertension in the majority of cases. Diabetes is responsible for endothelial dysfunction and hyperactive renin-angiotensin system, raising blood pressure. Thus, if diabetes is not managed, a person falls prey to hypertension and, ultimately, heart disease. This indicates that regulating diabetes and proper monitoring of hypertension can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease.

Consuming a healthy diet:

Diet plays a very crucial role in halting the sequelae caused by diabetes. Dietary instructions for diabetic people include the consumption of low salt to reduce the chances of hypertension. Furthermore, it is recommended to eat a plant-based diet for people who have diabetes as this kind of diet has increased fiber content and low saturated fats. Another important factor is the use of Vitamin E, which has a cardioprotective role according to various research.

Smoking cessation:

As people suffering from diabetes already have imbalanced inflammatory cascades, smoking seems to escalate these processes and their consequences. This also leads to increased levels of LDL, VLDL, and cholesterol, thus directly causing heart diseases. As a result, diabetic people need to quit smoking to avoid heart disease.

Limiting alcohol consumption:

As alcohol is known to disturb the fat metabolism of the body and, as a result, exposes the diabetic person to heart diseases.

Proper circadian rhythms:

Regulating proper sleep is a very important factor in preventing the horrors caused by diabetes. Diabetic people having improper sleep cycles are more prone to the excitability of GABA neurotransmitters caused by poor sleep. As a result, the sympathetic nervous system is activated, which leads to arrhythmias, contracted blood vessels, atherosclerosis, hypertension, and so on. These all are the clear indications of progressing heart disease, and halting these by adapting proper sleep-wake cycles is necessary for diabetic people.

Monitoring the cholesterol levels:

All cardiovascular diseases stem from the imbalance of cholesterol in the body. It is crucial for diabetic people to regularly monitor their blood cholesterol levels as diabetes is known to have effects on the liver, which is responsible for making cholesterol in the human body. Also, diabetes alters the morphology of vessel lining, resulting in increased adherence of cholesterol to the vessel walls. This increases the risk of thromboembolism, and ultimately, the person falls prey to heart disease.

Conclusion:

The gist is although diabetes is a multifactorial disease known to have effects on every system of the human body - the most important of which is the cardiovascular system - but this does not ensure that heart diseases are the ultimate result of diabetes. Following physician instructions and adopting healthy lifestyle modifications can reduce the heart diseases linked to diabetes.