What should you know about untreated type 2 diabetes?

Type 2 diabetes may cause thirst, frequent urination, tiredness, blurred vision, or slow-healing cuts, although some people notice few symptoms. Persistently elevated glucose can injure small and large blood vessels. This may contribute to chronic kidney disease, nerve symptoms such as burning or reduced sensation, circulation problems in the legs, and a higher risk of infection such as cellulitis. Reduced sensation can make a foot wound easy to miss. These changes can develop quietly, which is why regular checks matter even when you feel well.

Arrange a medical review to confirm the diagnosis and discuss a personal care plan. Monitoring may include glucose checks, blood pressure, kidney function, eye health, and foot inspection. Take prescribed medicines as directed and discuss side effects before stopping them. Regular meals, suitable activity, sleep, and avoiding tobacco support the plan, but lifestyle changes should not replace prescribed care. Check your feet for blisters, cracks, colour changes, or wounds and report problems early.

Seek urgent help for vomiting with marked thirst, deep or rapid breathing, confusion, fainting, severe drowsiness, or inability to keep fluids down. Contact a clinician promptly for a new foot wound, spreading redness, swelling, fever, or loss of sensation. Sudden weakness, facial drooping, trouble speaking, or a sudden vision change needs emergency assessment.

Ask which glucose checks and organ reviews you need, what your targets are, how to recognise low or high glucose, how to manage illness days, and when a foot, eye, or kidney symptom needs prompt assessment.