Top 10 Health Hacks - What is diabetes?

What is diabetes?

Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs when the pancreas is no longer able to make insulin, or when the body cannot make good use of the insulin it produces. Insulin is a hormone made by the pancreas that acts like a key to let glucose from the food we eat pass from the bloodstream into the cells in the body to produce energy. All carbohydrate foods are broken down into glucose in the blood. Insulin helps glucose get into the cells. Not being able to produce insulin or use it effectively leads to raised glucose levels in the blood (known as hyperglycaemia). Over the long-term high glucose levels are associated with damage to the body and failure of various organs and tissues.

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Types of diabetes:

There are three main types of diabetes – type 1, type 2 and gestational.

● Type 1 diabetes can develop at any age, but occurs most frequently in children and adolescents. When you have type 1 diabetes, your body produces very little or no insulin, which means that you need daily insulin injections to maintain blood glucose levels under control.

● Type 2 diabetes is more common in adults and accounts for around 90% of all diabetes cases. When you have type 2 diabetes, your body does not make good use of the insulin that it produces. The cornerstone of type 2 diabetes treatment is healthy lifestyle, including increased physical activity and healthy diet. However, over time most people with type 2 diabetes will require oral drugs and/or insulin to keep their blood glucose levels under control.

● Gestational diabetes (GDM) is a type of diabetes that consists of high blood glucose during pregnancy and is associated with complications to both mother and child. GDM usually disappears after pregnancy but women affected and their children are at increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life.

Diabetes is a condition that impairs the body’s ability to process blood glucose, otherwise known as blood sugar. In the United States, the estimated number of people over 18 years of age with diagnosed and undiagnosed diabetes is 30.2 million. The figure represents between 27.9 and 32.7 percent of the population.Without ongoing, careful management, diabetes can lead to a buildup of sugars in the blood, which can increase the risk of dangerous complications, including stroke and heart disease. Different kinds of diabetes can occur, and managing the condition depends on the type. Not all forms of diabetes stem from a person being overweight or leading an inactive lifestyle. In fact, some are present from childhood.

Prediabetes:

Doctors refer to some people as having prediabetes or borderline diabetes when blood sugar is usually in the range of 100 to 125 milligrams per deciliter. Normal blood sugar levels sit between 70 and 99 milligrams per deciliter, whereas a person with diabetes will have a fasting blood sugar higher than 126 milligrams per deciliter. The prediabetes level means that blood glucose is higher than usual but not so high as to constitute diabetes. People with prediabetes are, however, at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, although they do not usually experience the symptoms of full diabetes.

The risk factors for prediabetes and type 2 diabetes are similar. They include:

● being overweight

● a family history of diabetes

● having a high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol level lower than 40 mg/dL or 50 mg/dL

● a history of high blood pressure

● having gestational diabetes or giving birth to a child with a birth weight of more than 9 pounds

● a history of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)

● being of African-American, Native American, Latin American, or Asian-Pacific Islander descent

● being more than 45 years of age

● having a sedentary lifestyle

If a doctor identifies that a person has prediabetes, they will recommend that the individual makes healthful changes that can ideally stop the progression to type 2 diabetes. Losing weight and having a more healthful diet can often help prevent the disease.

How insulin problems develop

Doctors do not know the exact causes of type I diabetes. Type 2 diabetes, also known as insulin resistance, has clearer causes.

Insulin allows the glucose from a person’s food to access the cells in their body to supply energy. Insulin resistance is usually a result of the following cycle:

A person has genes or an environment that make it more likely that they are unable to make enough insulin to cover how much glucose they eat.
The body tries to make extra insulin to process the excess blood glucose.
The pancreas cannot keep up with the increased demands, and the excess blood sugar starts to circulate in the blood, causing damage.
Over time, insulin becomes less effective at introducing glucose to cells, and blood sugar levels continue to rise.

In the case of type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance takes place gradually. This is why doctors often recommend making lifestyle changes in an attempt to slow or reverse this cycle.

Exercise and diet tips:

If a doctor diagnoses a person with type 2 diabetes, they will often recommend making lifestyle changes to support weight loss and overall health. A doctor may refer a person with diabetes or prediabetes to a nutritionist. A specialist can help a person with diabetes lead an active, balanced lifestyle and manage the condition.

Steps a person can take to embrace a lifestyle with diabetes include:

● Eating a diet high in fresh, nutritious foods, including whole grains, fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, low-fat dairy, and healthy fat sources, such as nuts.

● Avoiding high-sugar foods that provide empty calories, or calories that do not have other nutritional benefits, such as sweetened sodas, fried foods, and high-sugar desserts.

● Refraining from drinking excessive amounts of alcohol or keeping intake to less than one drink a day for women or two drinks a day for men.

● Engaging in at least 30 minutes of exercise a day on at least 5 days of the week, such as walking, aerobics, riding a bike, or swimming.