In the world we are living in, diseases like diabetes, hypertension and heart related issues are quite prevalent. Every third person out of ten is suffering from any of the above-mentioned diseases.
By ZAINAB SOHAIL
Diabetes is the most common and often ignored health issue by most people. It is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States and is the No. 1 cause of kidney failure, lower-limb amputations, and adult blindness. In this article you will get some facts that you need to know about diabetes.
Diabetes:
Diabetes is the most prevailing disease of the current times and the number of people of all ages are affecting by this disease are increasing day by day. It is the condition in which the body do not perform the processes properly and uses the glucose from the food one eats. Diabetes happens from the building up of excess sugar (glucose) into the bloodstream when the body isn’t able to take up sugar into the cells. If uncontrolled it leads to several serious consequences causing damage to different body organs and tissues. i.e., kidney, heart, pancreas etc.
Why it happens?
When we eat some food, it is broken down into the sugar and released into the bloodstream as a result of which the blood sugar rises that gives the signal to pancreas to release insulin (hormone to lower glucose level in the bloodstream) to normalize the blood glucose level.
In case of diabetes, the glucose stays into the bloodstream because the pancreas is either not producing insulin or the body is not responding to insulin that results in increase in blood glucose levels.
Types of Diabetes:
There are different types of diabetes i.e., type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, gestational diabetes, Maturity Onset Diabetes of the Young (MODY), neonatal diabetes, type 3c diabetes, steroid-induced diabetes, cystic fibrosis etc. out of which type 2 diabetes is most common.
Type 2 diabetes:
About 90-95% of people suffers from type 2 diabetes in which the pancreas produces insulin but the body responds to it or unable to use it effectively. The genetic and environmental factors also play a role in expanding of disease. This type is usually diagnosed in adults and can be prevented and delayed with healthy life changes such as losing weight, eating healthy food and exercise.
Type 1 diabetes:
Approximately 5-10% of the people suffers from type 1 diabetes which is caused by autoimmune reaction that stops making insulin. Type 1 diabetes patient’s immune system attacks and destroys the beta cells of pancreas that produces insulin due to which the body doesn’t produce any insulin resulting in need of daily insulin injections to maintain blood glucose level. This disease can develop at any age but occurs most commonly in children and adolescents.
Gestational diabetes:
It is the type of diabetes that develops during pregnancy and is associated with the complications for both the mother and the child. It disappears after the pregnancy but increases the risk of type 2 diabetes in mother and the child in later life.
Causes of Diabetes:
Type 1 diabetes is caused by body’s immune system whereas the Type 2 Diabetes is caused due to insulin resistance. In case of Type 1 diabetes, no insulin is produced by the beta cells of pancreas. On the other hand, the body produces insulin but unable to use it effectively.
Symptoms:
If unmanaged, type 1 and type 2 diabetes results in symptoms such as frequent urination (polyuria), feeling thirst (polydipsia), feeling hungry (polyphagia) , feeling fatigued , blurry vision, unintentional weight loss and mood changes.
Diabetic patients may also feel numbness and tingling in their hands and feet that can be reduced in some people by good glucose management.
Type 2 diabetic patients develop symptoms slowly over the course of time. Such patients won’t have symptoms for many years. On the other hand, type 1 diabetic patients develop symptoms quickly over the course of weeks.
Risk factors:
The risk factors of type 1 diabetes include family history with type 1 diabetes, injury to the pancreas, presence of autoantibodies, physical stress, viral infections and geography.
The risk factors od type 2 diabetes include increase blood glucose levels, obesity, increase in belly fat, inactive physically, gestational diabetes ever (females), family history of type 2 diabetes and PCOS etc.
Diagnosis and Treatment:
Testing blood sugar is the early diagnosis for the diabetes. The tests that help in the diagnosis of diabetes include Fasting plasma glucose test, Random plasma glucose test A1c test and Oral glucose tolerance test.
Tests | Normal (mg/dl) | Prediabetic (mg/dl) | Diabetes (mg/dl) |
Fasting Glucose Test | <100 | 100-125 | ≥126 |
Random Glucose Test | <140 | 140-199 | ≥200 |
A1c Test | <5.7% | 5.7-6.4% | ≥6.5% |
Oral Glucose Tolerance Test | <140 | 140-199 | ≥200 |
Diet and physical activity along with lowering of blood glucose and the levels of other known risk factors that damage blood vessels are the treatment of diabetes.
Complications of Diabetes:
The body’s tissues and organs can be seriously damaged if the blood glucose level remains over a long period of time. Some of these damages can be life-threatening over time. Complications include:
- CVD problems i.e., heart attack, stroke, high blood pressure, high cholesterol etc.
- Neuropathy that causes numbing and tingling that starts with the toes and fingers and then spreads.
- Hearing problems
- Kidney damaging problems
- Depression
- Dementia
- Dental issues
- Foot problems
Preventions:
Type 1 disease can’t be prevented whereas type 2 diabetes can be prevented by achieving and maintaining healthy diet, being physically active, taking healthy diet and avoiding use of tobacco.
Surprising Facts about Diabetes:
In the end, some of the surprising key facts about elevated blood pressure are mentioned below.
- Diabetes is a major cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, stroke and lower limb amputation.
- In 2019, diabetes was the ninth leading cause of death with an estimated 1.5 million deaths directly caused by diabetes.
- Regular physical activity, healthy diet, maintaining normal body weight and avoiding use of tobacco or smoking are the common ways to prevent or delay diabetes.
- Diabetes can be treated with diet, mediation, physical activity, regular screening and treatment of complications.
Author
ZAINAB SOHAIL
A self-motivated research student of MS Industrial Biotechnology from NUST Islamabad, aiming to achieve something good by focusing on key issues by my hard work in building a scientific carrier.