Diabetes is one of the worst diseases happens to a person.
Many people across the globe are suffering from diabetes. In the US, over 20% of male and 10% of female are suffering from this serious disease.
About in India over a majority of people are suffering from diabetes. In the year 2013, it was estimated that over 382 million of people throughout the world has diabetes.
This article will be going to give you brief information on diabetes, type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes and gestational diabetes. Also, you will come to know about the symptoms and prevention of diabetes.
Let’s get started
What is diabetes?
Diabetes or diabetes mellitus is a disease in which your blood glucose or blood sugar level is too high because insulin production is inadequate or your body’s cells don’t respond to it.
Insulin is a hormone that helps the glucose to get into your cells to give them energy.
Glucose comes from the food you eat.
There are three types of diabetes:
Type 1 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes
Gestational Diabetes
Type 1 Diabetes
In type 1- diabetes, your body does not produce insulin.
Type 1 diabetes is also referring as juvenile diabetes, dependent diabetes or onset diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes is somewhere common to type 2 diabetes.
People usually develop type 1 diabetes is their teenage or early adulthood age.
According to CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) between 2001- 2009, the prevalence of type 1 diabetes under 20’s in the USA rose by 23%. (1)
Type 2 Diabetes
In type 2 diabetes, the body does not produce enough insulin or the body’s cells do not react to it.
Type 2 diabetes was previously known as Non-Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus (NIDDM) or adult-onset diabetes.
About the remaining 90% of people get affected by type 2 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes is typically a progressive disease, it gradually gets worse and the patient will probably have to end up taking an insulin injection or an insulin tablet.
Gestational Diabetes
Gestational diabetes affects females during pregnancy. Not every woman gets affected by this disease. The cases of gestational diabetes are rare.
At the time of pregnancy, some women having very high glucose level in their blood and their bodies are unable to produce enough insulin (Insulin is a hormone which transports all glucose from the blood in body’s cell). This results in rising of glucose level and women may get affected by gestational diabetes.
The majority of gestational diabetes patient can be cured with exercise and proper diet. 10% to 20% of women will need to take some kind of blood glucose controlling medicines. If a woman is pregnant, she should definitely diagnose their blood sugar level.
Undiagnosed gestational diabetes can raise the risk of complications during childbirth.
Scientists from the National Institutes of Health and Harvard University found that women whose diet before pregnancy were high in animal fats and has a high level of cholesterol have a high chance of getting gestational diabetes, in comparison to their opposite whose diet is low in animal fat and cholesterol (2)
Here are some complications related to diabetes
Skin complication: People with diabetes have more chances of skin infection and skin disorder.
Eye complication: People may have a cataract, glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, etc.
Heart complication: People with diabetes may have ischemic heart disease when the blood supply to heart muscle gets diminished.
Mental health issues: Uncontrolled diabetes may risk suffering from depression, anxiety or some other mental problems.
Hearing loss: Diabetes patient has a risk of hearing problems.
Gastroparesis: The muscles of the stomach stops working properly.
Hypertension: This problem arises in a diabetic patient. It can raise the risk of kidney disease, eye problems, heart attack, and strokes.
Erectile dysfunction: Male sexual problem.
Not healing of wounds and cuts: Cuts, wound, and lesions take much longer time to heal.
Some common facts about diabetes
People may be able to control their diabetes by following a healthy diet, regular exercise and monitoring their blood glucose level. An overweight and obese person have a high risk of developing type 2 diabetes. People, who have a lot of fat in their abdominal area, are at high risk of getting affected by diabetes.
Researchers from Imperial College London reported that drinking soda per day can raise the risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 22%. (3)
The risk of developing type 2 diabetes becomes greater as we get older. Though there is no such evidence, experts say that as we grew old, we tend to put on weight and become less active.
A man whose testosterone level is low, have also found a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. You can read our previous article on testosterone issues in men’s.
Symptoms of Diabetes
Feeling thirsty all the time
Losing weight without trying
Blurred vision
Going to toilet a lot, especially at night
Feeling sluggish and tired
Cuts and wounds may take longer time to recover
Preventions of diabetes
Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes cannot be prevented.
But type 2 diabetes, which approximately happens to 80–90% of people can often be prevented or delayed by maintaining a normal body weight, doing regular physical activities (exercise) and eating a healthy diet.
Expert says a higher level of exercise (more than 90 minutes per day) reduce the risk of diabetes by 28%.
A diabetic patient can get much benefit by including more dietary food in their diet. They should include whole grains and fibers. They should also eat good fats such as polyunsaturated fat found in nuts, vegetable oils, and fish.
Diabetes can also be prevented by limiting down eating less red meat, sugary beverages and other sources of saturated fat. A person who smokes or consumes tobacco may also have a higher risk of diabetes.
Lifestyle
People with diabetes can get benefit from small changes in their lifestyle.
If you are suffering from diabetes, you should include good nutritional food to achieve body weight.
You can also do regular exercise with the goal of keeping both short-term and long-term blood glucose level in check.
