5 Skin Signs That Scream Bad Diabetes!

Let me spark your curiosity fast, your skin can act like a billboard for your blood sugar and sometimes it warns you before you feel anything. No pain, no obvious diabetes symptoms, just skin changes that are basically your body saying, hey glucose is too high here. And here's the sensational part, one of the skin signs that I'm going to show you today can mean your triglycerides are dangerously high without blood work and your risk of pancreatitis is real in that case. And that is not a clickbait, that is emergency room level real. Now I will save the one for the end because it's important, it's the most dramatic and most important to recognize early. Today we are doing these five skin signs that scream uncontrolled diabetes and I will keep this simple. What it looks like you're gonna see on the screen and why it happens, what to do about it and when it is urgent. And here's a quick reality check. Skin signs do not diagnose diabetes by themselves, okay? But they're powerful clues and if you have diabetes you will know something is not right with your diabetes management. If you recognize yourself in this video with the photos I'm going to show you, well get your numbers checked and just do not guess. All right number one it's going to be recurrent yeast and fungal rashes that keep coming back. What it looks like? Well it's usually a red rash in warm skin folds, under the belly fold, under breasts, groin, between toes. Sometimes it looks shiny, sometimes it cracks, it often burns or itches. You might also notice frequent vaginal yeast infections. Now that also happens to people on Jardi and Sanfar Siga and half the time they don't even know that it is caused by the medication. Or jock itch, right? That turns again and again and you're like what's happening? I have no idea, right? So those are common. Why does screams high blood sugar to begin with? Well because yeast loves sugar, right? High glucose in tissues and sweat makes a perfect environment for yeast to grow. Diabetes also weakens your immune system so your skin loses the fight a lot more easily. When I see repetitive fungal infections that are stubborn, I think insulin resistance and chronic high blood sugar or those medications I talked about like Jardi and Sanfar Siga or Invokana. Now what to do here? Yes you treat the rash but the real solution is to fix your glucose and eliminate the meds that could be causing it. If you keep treating yeast without fixing blood sugar control or without eliminating the insulting agent, it is like mopping the floor while the sink is overflowing. Now when to act fast? If you have spreading redness, fever, severe pain or you're immunocompromised, do not sit on it. Infection can escalate very quickly in diabetes. Now let's talk about the number two skin sign. Well boils, carbon calls and repeated skin infections. Now what it looks like? It looks like painful bumps. Warm, swollen, tender, sometimes with pus. They can show up on the like neck, armpits, groin, buttocks or thighs. And some people get recurrent infected hair follicles. Others get deep clusters called carbuncles. Now why diabetes makes this worse? Well first of all high blood sugar impairs the neutrophil function. It's a part of the wet blood cells right? It also damages small blood vessels over time. So immune cells and oxygen do not reach tissue as efficiently. Now bacteria get an advantage. This is why people with diabetes have higher risk of bacterial infections and slower healing. Now what to do here? Well first of all do not squeeze these. I know you want to, but you can drive infection deeper when you do that. If it is large recurrent or you have a fever, you may need drainage and antibiotics. Also this is a moment to check your glucose control right now. Not next month, not in three months, not in six months. And if you're naming your boils like pets because they keep coming back so often, you need to talk about your a1c. Number three skin sign would be slow healing cuts, cracks and food sores. Now what it looks like? A small cut that should heal in a few days, but it lingers for weeks. Cracks on the heels that split and hurt. A blister that turns into an open sore. Any wound on the foot that is not improving. Now why this is a big big deal? Well as you know uncontrolled diabetes damages the nerves and blood vessels. Now less sensation means you do not notice injury. Less circulation means less oxygen delivery. High glucose also messes with collagen and wound healing. Well that combination is how minor foot injuries become serious ulcers. And yes this is where amputations start. Now what to do? If you have diabetes, inspect your own feet regularly. Don't wait for doctors to look at it every six months or once a year. If you see an open sore, do not wait. Get evaluated. Early care saves limbs. Also if your wounds are not healing, it is a sign your diabetes plan needs tightening. Now here's the urgent warning. If there is black tissue, spreading redness, drainage, foul odor, fever or severe pain, that is urgent. Same day evaluation. Go to ER. Number four. Well the dark velvety patches on the neck or armpits. Well this one is pretty classic. It actually starts very early even before diabetes. Now what it looks like is that it's thicker darker velvety skin in folds. Often back of the neck, armpits or groin. Sometimes elbows or knees. Now what it means is that what we call as achondrosis nigricans. It is strongly linked to insulin resistance. Think of it as like high insulin signaling on the skin. It often shows up before type 2 diabetes. Way before. And it can also show up when diabetes is getting worse. Now what to do here. Do not just buy a cream and just call it a day. The root cause is the insulin resistance. So nutrition, weight management, sleep, activity and when needed medication. Supplements that improves your insulin sensitivity. This is one of those signs where I tell people your skin is giving you an early warning sign. I see that a lot in my PCOS patients. Polycystic ovarian syndrome. I tell them to take it seriously because that's going to turn into diabetes and heart disease later. Now here's a quick truth. You cannot scrub insulin resistance off in the shower. I wish you could but it would make you know definitely my job a lot easier. But it's not how it works. Now the best one here and the sensational one that I teased you at the beginning is number five. Sudden crops of tiny yellow bumps that itch. It's just like hell. So what it looks like. Clusters of small yellow red bumps. Often on the buttocks, thighs, elbows and knees. Fun. They can itch. Like I said like hell. They can pop up fast, fast, very fast and like over days. We call this eruptive zoontomatosis. When I see it I do not think mild sugar issues. I think severe bad metabolic trouble. Why the screams uncontrolled diabetes? Well first of all this often happens when triglycerides are extremely high which can happen in uncontrolled diabetes. Very high triglycerides raise the risk of acute pancreatitis. Now that can be very dangerous. It can be deadly. So these bumps are not just a cosmetic issue here. They can be a warning sign of a serious lipid problem that is genetic primarily but triggered by uncontrolled blood sugar. Now what to do here. If you suddenly develop these bumps you need labs. Okay not just vibes. Get fasting glucose, A1c, a lipid panel with triglycerides fasting. If triglycerides are very high treatment may require urgent, urgent dietary changes. Watching more sugar md channel and medication sometimes right and tighter glucose control. Sometimes it is an emergency depending on the level and symptoms. If your triglycerides are in the thousands that could be an emergency. Now when to go to urgent care or emergency room. If you have these bumps plus severe upper abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting or fever do not wait because that could be pancreatitis. It's not something that you just deal at home. Now let me connect the dots and make this useful for you. Why skin signs matter so much in diabetes? Many people think uncontrolled diabetes only shows up as thirst, frequent urination and fatigue. Sure it can but skin changes are one of the most common visible clues that are screaming at you that your glucose has been running high over time. Your skin has tons of blood vessels and nerves. So when diabetes affects blood vessels, nerves and immunity the skin often shows it very early. Now what I want you to do next. If you saw yourself in one or more of these, do two things for me. First check your numbers, fasting glucose your A1c. If you have diabetes already look at your home glucose trends. If you wear a CGM look at your time and range. Secondly do not treat the skin only. Treat the cause. Better glycemic control, better blood pressure control, better lipid control, cholesterol control, sleep, nutrition, movement and the right meds and supplements when needed. So sugarmds.com is your supplement source for your best diabetic supplement needs. Because here's the hard truth for you. Your skin is not the problem. It is just a messenger. So I'm going to give you a quick recap so it sticks. Number one recurrent yeast and fungal rashes. Number two boils and repeated infections. Number three slow healing cuts and foot sores. Number four dark velvety patches on neck or armpits. Number five sudden itchy yellow bumps that can signal very high triglycerides. Now if you want help building a diabetes plan that actually gets your glucose under control and protects your heart and kidneys and nerves and the skin. Well visit me at my clinic in Port St. Lucie Florida at Diabetes Thyroid and Hormone Center of the Treasure Coast and our website at sugarmds.com and tcendo.com and learn more about our clinic and our supplements and I'll see you in the next video. Talk to you later.