Diseases that in some way affect our metabolism are not uncommon. And one of the biggest, if not the biggest, examples is the well-known diabetes. The disease is divided into a few types, with type 1 and type 2 diabetes being the most common. It can bring various negative impacts to someone’s life and may force a person to completely change their lifestyle, but beyond all of this, the question of whether diabetes causes infertility is one of the most frequently asked by those living with the disease, precisely because it is one of the greatest fears for people who have it.
The inability to create another life can leave someone in a state of panic, for both men and women. Besides being a dream for many people, the truth is that nobody likes to know they cannot reproduce, especially when this is due to a disease.
Infertility is also not uncommon in Brazil and worldwide, and its association with diabetes is often made. This is because diabetes can indeed cause infertility in some cases, but this does not mean that a person with the disease will suddenly become infertile overnight.
What happens is that one of the consequences of worsening diabetes is exactly this. And although it manifests a bit differently for men and women, this consequence can affect both sexes. Today we will discuss how this can happen and how to avoid diabetes causing infertility.
What is Diabetes?
Before we talk specifically about the consequences that diabetes can bring, it’s necessary to understand what it is and how it arises in a person. Only in this way is it possible to correctly understand how diabetes can cause infertility in someone.
Diabetes is a disease primarily characterized by high blood glucose levels, also known as hyperglycemia. It usually occurs due to some deficiency of insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas.
Insulin is a hormone whose function is to allow glucose into all cells of the body; when there is a defect in it, glucose accumulates in the blood, which ends up causing diabetes.
Why Does Diabetes Cause Infertility?
Diabetes is a disease that can cause various sensory and also vascular changes in a person, which greatly harms a person’s sex life, both for men and women. So, we need to talk specifically about how diabetes causes infertility in each sex.
Male Infertility
Some of the main reasons for decreased fertility in men due to diabetes are vascular and circulatory changes, which can hinder the flow of blood to the man’s penis and make it difficult to achieve an erection.
The general sensitivity changes we already mentioned also reduce the sexual pleasure a man feels, which contributes to infertility.
Other common reasons in men who do not have diabetes, such as stress and anxiety, can also affect a man’s sex life. Due to the dietary restrictions a diabetic man must follow, both stress and anxiety can become elevated, causing fertility problems. In addition, it is also believed that this disease has a direct impact on sperm production.
Female Infertility
But the problems caused by diabetes are not exclusive to men; they also greatly impact the life of a woman. The main consequences that the disease can bring in this respect are premature menopause, which prevents a woman from conceiving, severe menstrual changes, and an increased risk of miscarriage.
But it is possible to prevent all these consequences from affecting a man’s or a woman’s life. There are ways to prevent and also treat infertility caused by diabetes so that this does not become such a big problem for those who have it.
Can Infertility Be Prevented?
Diabetes causes infertility, but often this happens due to the advancement of the disease. Therefore, the best way to prevent infertility is by keeping the disease under control and receiving appropriate treatment to keep blood sugar regulated, preventing it from worsening.
There are also treatments for those who have already been affected in some way by diabetes. In men, vasodilating medications such as Viagra are often used, but always alongside diabetes management and monitoring. In some cases, psychological support may also be recommended.
Whether causing infertility or not, diabetes is not an easy disease to live with. As you may have noticed, an individual’s entire lifestyle must change so that they can live with the disease without more serious consequences affecting their life, including the infertility issue we have discussed at length here.
But the truth is that it exists and many people have this disease. Therefore, the best thing to do is to treat the disease and strictly follow all guidelines so that it does not progress or bring any of these consequences.
See Also: Gestational Diabetes – How to Diagnose and Treat
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