How bad are high blood sugar numbers? For many people this question never comes up because their body metabolizes glucose correctly and high blood sugar isn’t a concern. This is easily understandable as most people never bother to care about things that don’t directly affect them. The concerning thing is that the number of diabetics diagnosed every day is growing and many of them choose not to be concerned about high blood sugar numbers despite the negative health effects that high blood sugar numbers can and will cause.

Blood sugar, or glucose, is used by every cell in the body as fuel. When we eat sugars or carbohydrates the body metabolizes them into glucose which circulates in the blood stream. As the body needs the glucose for fuel the brain signals the pancreas to release insulin, which is a hormone that is responsible for allowing the blood glucose to enter the cells and be used as fuel. In diabetics either the pancreas has ceased to produce insulin, or the cells of the body have become resistant to the action of insulin. While it may not sound too bad to have an extra amount of fuel circulating in the blood, the fact is that high blood sugar numbers mean that the glucose has built up to the point that it can begin to cause damage to the bodies systems.

Those with high blood sugar numbers must follow their prescribed treatment regimen as closely as possible in the effort to maintain their blood sugar numbers as close to normal as possible. High blood sugar numbers that are left untreated can cause heart problems, kidney damage, liver damage, damage to the walls of blood vessels, glaucoma, blindness, coma, and even death. In order to live a long, healthy and normal life the diabetic should always strive to keep high blood sugar numbers from happening.