For men, having a high blood sugar level carries a whole new set of complications that manifest in certain symptoms that can only be experienced by those with a Y chromosome. These early symptoms can be really helpful if the one experiencing some of them immediately gets checked and implements ways to reverse his condition. See below for early diabetes symptoms that men should look out for, even the young ones.
1. Decreased libido
Once your blood sugar level shoots over the normal level, you’ll feel fatigued and tired. This is not just apparent in the energy you have at work or at home, this can also manifest in your libido. Now, this could be because of other non-diabetic and more personal issues, but then, low energy and extreme fatigue can cause quite a loss in a man’s sex drive.
For women, diabetic neuropathy or nerve damage can lead to a feeling of numbness in the genital area. This will make sexual intercourse purposeless and sometimes painful. Also, certain hormonal changes can cause a drop in libido in both men and women.
2. Frequent urination
Normally, both men and women urinate four to eight times a day depending on the number of times they intake fluid. Needing to go beyond that number or waking up in the night to urinate might be a call for help from your body that you have a high blood sugar level.
Frequent urination is an early sign of type 1 and type 2 diabetes, this means that your body is trying to get rid of the excess and unused glucose in your bloodstream through urination.
3. Retrograde ejaculation
An uncommon condition, retrograde ejaculation happens when the bladder’s opening doesn’t close. This causes
the semen to go on reverse and go backward into the bladder instead of going forward into the urethra and out of the penis. The semen then mixes with urine in the bladder.
Retrograde ejaculation can cause infertility because there will be very little semen that will be discharged during climax, the rest will be in the bladder. If you have this condition, you’ll notice that you have cloudy urine after a sexual activity.
4. Low testosterone
Testosterone is one of the hormones in the body that helps with the improvement of the handling of insulin and also reduce body fat. This is particularly troubling since a third of all men that are diabetic also have low testosterone levels. Low testosterone in men can result to a decrease in libido, depressed mood, and an overall lack of energy.
As a man ages, it is natural for him to have a low testosterone level than normal, however if a man has a high blood sugar level, chances are even if he’s young, he’ll have low testosterone.
5. Erectile dysfunction
Another consequence of a low testosterone level is the high risk of erectile dysfunction. However, this can also be caused if a man’s blood sugar level is way more than normal. This condition is caused when nerves and blood vessels in the penis get damaged.
Now, nerve and blood vessel damage can be caused by a lot of factors but the one thing that can cause both of them at the same time is a high blood sugar level. Also, men who are diabetic tend to have erectile dysfunction 10 to 15 years earlier than men who have a normal blood sugar level.
Reverse While It’s Still Early
When you’re already experiencing some of these symptoms, you might want to get checked as soon as possible. If you’re still on the throes of prediabetes, it can still be reversed, get your blood sugar back to normal level. That’s why it is very important for you to get checked early so that your doctor can give you directions on how you can potentially reverse your diabetes and revert back to a normal blood sugar level.
Once it is reversed, all other complications caused by a high blood sugar level will be gone. Your testosterone level will go back to normal and the rest, namely your libido and endurance, w
