The most common type 2 diabetes symptoms may include excessive thirst, frequent urination, and cuts or sores that heal slowly. Many people with type 2 diabetes also experience blurred vision and fatigue. It is not unusual for people with this type of diabetes not to experience any symptoms at all initially, because the condition is often slow to progress. The symptoms are also usually so minor to start with that many people might mistakenly believe nothing is wrong with them or that they are sick from some other minor ailment. People who experience one or more of the type 2 diabetes symptoms should probably see a doctor as soon as possible because managing this type of diabetes is generally easier if a person has not been suffering from it for a long period of time.
People who suffer from type 2 diabetes often feel the need to drink more water, which leads to increased urination. The desire for more water is probably the result of too much sugar in the bloodstream, which absorbs much of the fluid from other parts of the body and might cause dehydration. People with type 2 diabetes also often notice that their cuts and sores do not heal as quickly as they did before, and they might also begin to get more infections in general. Type 2 diabetes can negatively impact the body's immune system and healing response, but these symptoms should improve when diabetes is managed properly.
Blurred vision is another of the more common type 2 diabetes symptoms. The reason for blurred vision is likely related to the lack of fluid in the body, which is often absorbed by the excess sugar in the bloodstream. Excess sugar can pull fluid from the lenses of the eyes as well as from other body tissues, and this can cause a person not to be able to see clearly and focus well. The fatigue that many people experience as a result of type 2 diabetes is most likely the direct result of sugar not reaching the body's cells, which can lead to excessive tiredness.
The fact that many type 2 diabetes symptoms can be connected to lots of other health problems tends to make the illness hard to diagnose. A person who is concerned that she may have type 2 diabetes based on her symptoms should see a doctor for tests. Doctors can usually perform a few blood sugar tests a couple of days apart to see if blood sugar is consistently staying high. If blood sugar is in the correct range for diabetes after two blood tests are done, it is likely that a person has type 2 diabetes.