Who would have thought the effects of diabetes could be influenced by your height? If you have diabetes, it may be better to be short than tall.
Why? Well, it has to do with those pseky foot and leg ulcers that can
cause anthing from minor inconvenience to amputation. When ulcers
become series, it's becaue they have become infected, perhaps even
leading to gangrene—which is the major reason for amputation.
In the general population, a simple cut or other open wound isn't
usually a problem, because it causes some degree of pain that alerts
the person to its presence and allows him or her to seek treatment.
Diabetics, however, are prone to nerve damage, which can mean they have
ulcers on feet or legs and aren't even aware of them until they have
become serious problems.
That's where the height difference comes in. According to a study by
the National Taiwan University Hospital, reported in the Canadian
Medical Association Journal, taller diabetics are more likjely to need
amputation than those who are shorter.
The reason? The nerves that lead to the legs and feet are the longest
in the body, making them especially vulnerable to diabetic nerve
damage. Naturally,the taller you are the longer those nerves are, and
the more susceptible they are to deterioration and loss of function.
The shorter nerves of shorter diabetics are not as open to damage, so
those people are better able to feel the pain when a cut or other wound
happens, giving them a chance to deal with it before it causes serious
damage.
So if you are a tall diabetic, is this cause for panic or despair? Not
at all. It just reinforces the advice we diabetics have always been
given: look after your feet and legs carefully, check regularly for
wounds, ulcers or anything unusual—and get them treated right away.
And yes, that goes for diabetics both short and tall!
