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Causes
By Mayo Clinic staffA complex system of nerves runs through your body, connecting your brain to your muscles, skin and other organs. Through these nerves, your brain senses pain and temperature, controls your muscles, and performs automatic tasks such as digestion.
High blood sugar a factor
Prolonged exposure to high blood sugar (glucose) can damage delicate nerve fibers, but exactly why this happens isn't completely clear. It's likely that a combination of factors plays a role, including the complex interaction between nerves and blood vessels. High blood glucose interferes with the ability of the nerves to transmit signals. It also weakens the walls of the small blood vessels (capillaries) that supply the nerves with oxygen and nutrients.
Other factors
Other factors that may contribute to diabetic neuropathy include:
- Protein glycation. This occurs when sugars in your body react with proteins, altering the nature of the proteins. Glycated proteins have been linked to aging and to complications of diabetes, including diabetic neuropathy.
- Inflammation in the nerves caused by an autoimmune response. This occurs when your immune system mistakenly attacks part of your body as if it were a foreign organism.
- Genetic factors unrelated to diabetes that make some people more susceptible to nerve damage.
- Smoking and alcohol abuse, which damage both nerves and blood vessels and significantly increase the risk of infections.
