| |
| |
|
Diabetes Information |
|
Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes
Diabetes affects the manner in which the body handles digested carbohydrates. If neglected, diabetes can cause serious health complications, ranging from blindness to kidney failure. Approximately 8% of the population in the United States has diabetes. This means that approximately 16 million people have been diagnosed with the disease, based only on national statistics. The American Diabetes Association estimates that diabetes accounts for 178,000 deaths, 54,000 amputees, and 12,000-24,000 cases of blindness annually. Blindness is 25 times more common among diabetic patients compared to nondiabetics. It is proposed that by the year 2010, diabetes will exceed both heart disease and cancer as the leading cause of death through its many complications. Diabetics have a high level of blood glucose. The blood sugar level is regulated by insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas, which releases it in response to food consumption. Insulin causes the cells of the body to take in glucose from the blood. The glucose is used as fuel for cellular functions. Diagnostic standards for diabetes have been fasting plasma glucose levels greater than 140 mg/dL on two occasions and plasma glucose greater than 200 mg/dL following a 75-gram glucose load. More recently, the American Diabetes Association lowered the criteria for a diabetes diagnosis to fasting plasma glucose levels equal to or greater than 126 mg/dL. Fasting plasma levels outside the normal limit require additional tests, usually by repeating the fasting plasma glucose test and (if indicated) giving the patient an oral glucose tolerance test. The symptoms of diabetes include excessive urination, excessive thirst and hunger, sudden weight loss, blurred vision, delay in healing of wounds, dry and itchy skin, repeated infections, fatigue and headache. These symptoms, while suggestive of diabetes, may be due to other reasons also. There are two different types of diabetes. Type I Diabetes (juvenile diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes): The cause of type I diabetes is caused by pancreatic inability to produce insulin. It is responsible for 5-10% of cases of diabetes. The pancreatic Islet of Langerhans cells, which secrete the hormone, are destroyed by the body's own immune system, probably because it mistakes them for a virus. Viral infections are thought to be the trigger that sets off this auto-immune disease. It is more common in caucasians and runs in families. If untreated, death occurs within a few months of the onset of juvenile diabetes, as the cells of the body starve because they no longer receive the hormonal prompt to take in glucose. While most Type I diabetics are young (hence the term Juvenile Diabetes), the condition can develop at any age. Autoimmune diabetes can be definitely diagnosed by a blood test which shows the presence of anti-insulin/anti-islet-cell antibodies. Type II Diabetes (non insulin dependent diabetes or adult onset diabetes): This diabetes is a result of body tissues becoming resistant to insulin. It accounts for 90-95% of cases. Often the pancreas is producing more than average amounts of insulin, but the cells of the body have become unresponsive to its effect due to the chronically high level of the hormone. Eventually the pancreas may exhaust its over-active secretion of the hormone, and insulin levels fall to below normal. A tendency towards Type II diabetes is hereditary, but it is unlikely to develop in normal-weight individuals eating a low- or moderate-carbohydrate diet. Obese, sedentary individuals who eat poor-quality diets based on refined starch, which constantly activates pancreatic insulin secretion, are prone to develop insulin resistance. Native peoples such as North American Indians whose traditional diets did not include refined starch until its recent introduction by Europeans have extremely high rates of diabetes, up to 5 times the rate of caucasians. Blacks and hispanics are also at higher risk. Though Type II diabetes is not fatal within a matter of months, it can lead to health complications over several years and cause severe disability and premature death. As with Type I diabetes, the condition is found primarily in one age group, in this case people over 40 (which is why it is often termed Adult Onset); however, with the rise in childhood and teenage obesity, it is appearing in children as well. If neglected, diabetes can lead to life-threatening complications such as kidney damage (nephropathy), heart disease, nerve damage (neuropathy), retinal damage and blindness(retinopathy), and hypoglycemia (drastic reduction in glucose levels). Diabetes damages blood vessels, especially smaller end-arteries, leading to severe and premature atherosclerosis. Diabetics are prone to foot problems because neuropathy, which affects approximately 10% of patients, causes their feet to lose sensation. Foot injuries, common in day-to-day living, go unnoticed, and these injuries do not heal because of poor circulation through the small arteries in the foot. Gangrene and subsequent amputation of toes or feet is the consequence for many elderly patients with poorly-controlled diabetes. Usually these sequelae appear earlier in Type I than Type II diabetes, because Type II patients have some of their own insulin production left to buffer changes in blood sugar levels. Type I diabetes is a serious disease and there is no permanent cure for it. However, the symptoms can be controlled by strict dietary monitering and insulin injections. Implanted pumps which release insulin immediately in response to changes in blood glucose are in the testing stages. In theory, since it caused by diet, Type II diabetes should be preventable and manageable by dietary changes alone, but in practice many diabetics (and many obese people without diabetes) find it personally impossible to lose weight or adhere to a healthy diet. Therefore they are frequently treated with drugs which restore the body's response to insulin, and in some cases injections of insulin. Please note that this article is not a subsitute for medical advice. If you suspect you have diabetes or are in a high risk group, please see your doctor. For more information, please visit our site, http://www.diabetes-testing-2006.info Frank Vanderlugt
MORE RESOURCES:
A Diagnosis of Pre-Diabetes Isn't Enough to Motivate Many Patients - Diabetes Health (press release)
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Pre-Diabetes: Check Engine Warning Light Your car has an early detection system and so does your body. Take 3 minutes to read this article and learn how you can save yourself a life time of aches, pains, and costly medical bills. Diabetes and Exercise - Just Move it! While exercise and eating guidelines are based on good scientific principles, they do not necessarily agree with human nature or common sense. Recent history tells us that we are better off encouraging the mediocre people who are willing to include exercise in their daily lives, rather than cramming guidelines down the majority of those who want to fight the inevitable. Diabetes Awareness: The Downside... a New Wardrobe? Here is some commonsense thinking:I can't understand why anyone who has diabetes wouldn't exercise and watch what they eat.The down side is that you may have to get an entire new wardrobe since exercise and healthy eating causes weight and size reduction. Exercise - The Only Hope for Diabetes! Why is it that the smallest paragraph in diabetes prevention magazines is about exercise? Exercise is probably the only hope for the diabetes crisis. If you have diabetes or some one in your family tree does, beware! You really have one choice, keep moving. Diabetes And The Long Term Dangers Diabetes has hidden dangers that begin before diagnosis and continue to worsen if certain steps are not taken to prevent the complications that are the true, "killers" in terms of diabetes.Statistics show that there are around 18 million diabetics in America, both Type 1 and Type 2. Improper pH Balance Increases Risk and Damage of Diabetes THE RISKBlood sugar balance is critical to your body's proper functioning. Blood sugar (glucose) is the primary source of fuel for the body's cells and is particularly critical to the brain and the eyes. Diabetes: Diabetics Fight Back Many cases of diabetes go unnoticed or unchecked before a person or their doctor realizes the inevitable. This disease silently uses destructive high blood sugars to gradually damage the body for months or even years, before symptoms are noted. Type I Diabetes: Insulin-Dependent Diabetes Type I diabetes is also known as insulin-dependent diabetes or juvenile diabetes. This form of diabetes is mainly found in children. Diabetes Type 2 and Artificial Sweeteners Diabetes Type 2 (adult onset)Refined carbs/sugars are actually the biggest contributing factor to type 2 diabetes--that is, the type of diabetes people develop later in life. The major contributing factor to type 2 diabetes is eating too many refined carbs. Recognizing Early Symptoms Diabetes Early symptoms diabetesStay alert in recognizing early symptoms of diabetes. Certain symptoms put you on notice and you'll want to decrease the chance of developing into complications. Diabetes The following information is for educational purposes only and is meant to complement any medical treatment, not to prescribe or diagnose any condition. Please consult with your doctor before starting any medical or nutritional program. Diabetes Awareness: Diabetes on the Job When you go to work, your diabetes goes with you.You get up, get showered, get breakfast, get to work. Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes Diabetes affects the manner in which the body handles digested carbohydrates. If neglected, diabetes can cause serious health complications, ranging from blindness to kidney failure. Pancreas Transplants - A Solution For Type 1 Diabetes Sufferers? Type 1 diabetes was formerly known as juvenile diabetes or insulin dependent diabetes mellitus. Type 1 diabetes matures quickly and symptoms are very visible. Benfotiamine - A New Tool In Preventing Diabetic Complications? Benfotiamine made headlines globally in 2003 when researchers released information about a study that was conducted at The Einstein College of Medicine in New York. The bottom line of this study was that a substance of the allithiamine group of the naturally occurring thiamine-derived compounds had positive effects on neuropathy, retinopathy and nephropathy and heart/circulatory problems in diabetics. Diabetic Fruits Fruit gives you energy, vitamins, minerals, and fiber.Examples of fruits which are recommended to Diabetics include:? Bananas? Apples? Fruit Juices? Strawberries? Raisins? Oranges? Mango? Guava? PapayaBasically, for diabetics,One small apple, one-half cup fruit juice, or one-half of a grapefruit all considered one serving of fruit each. Diabetes Awareness: Family of Diabetics Thousands, if not millions of people have diabetes in their family. It's almost tragic the way things happen because it's not always a "common knowledge" among families. Have Diabetes, But Enjoy Quality Food? Try Diabetic Recipes! Having diabetes certainly limits some of the food you can eat, but with the right diabetic recipes you can still enjoy fine food. Sometimes, it is hard to know what foods are safe for you to eat. Diabetic Foot Care Tips: Cant Afford to Ignore It! Most of the time, we focus on health or skin care completely ignoring the importance of our feet. Foot care is equally important especially for diabetic people to avoid foot complications. Diabetes the Silent Killer - The Iceberg Effect! What sank the "Unsinkable Ship" the Titanic was not the tip of the iceberg, but the lurking 90% percent of the iceberg hidden under the surface. In the movie you see the captain steer the ship clear of the block of ice on top of the water, but underneath not known to the captain, crew or passengers, the razor sharp ice was splitting the steel bottom of the vessel like a stick of melted butter.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
