Can diabetes affect your bowels and cause stomach pain?

People with diabetes, especially when blood sugar levels are not controlled, are at risk for nerve damage anywhere in the body. Damage to the nerves that innervate the stomach can lead to gastroparesis, a painful condition in which the stomach does not empty properly. Damage to nerves in the intestine can cause bowel symptoms, including diarrhea, constipation and fecal incontinence.