Diabetes Mellitus
Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that is characterized by high levels of sugar in the blood. It can be caused by too little insulin (a hormone produced by the pancreas to regulate blood sugar), resistance to insulin, or both. Glucose is a form of sugar in the blood, which acts as the main source of energy for our body. It is created when our body breaks down the food that we eat into energy with the help of insulin. Insulin acts like a key to unlock the body's cells, so glucose can enter and serve as fuel for the cells. This process helps to regulate the amount of sugar in the bloodstream. In people with diabetes, however, the pancreas either produces little or no insulin, or the cells do not respond appropriately to the insulin that is produced, causing the blood sugar level to rise.
High blood sugar sets off processes that can lead to complications, like heart, kidney, and eye disease, or other serious problems. The symptoms caused in diabetics are due to persistently high levels of sugar in their circulating blood. Frequent urination, extreme thirst, blurred vision, weight loss, fatigue, increased appetite, nausea or vomiting, frequent fungal or bacterial infections of the skin or urinary tract, and poor wound healing are common manifestations of the disease. The high blood sugar becomes a medium that is conducive to the growth of disease-causing microorganisms. Also, long standing diabetes leads to thickening of the blood vessels, thereby affecting the blood flow to various parts of the body.
Type 1 diabetes is mostly an autoimmune disease, i.e., the immune system turns on itself and destroys the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Although type 1 diabetes usually develops in childhood or during teenage, it can appear later. In type 2 diabetes, the body still produces insulin, but the cells cannot use it. This is due to a phenomenon known as insulin resistance. Over time, high levels of sugar build up in the bloodstream. Being overweight and inactive increases the chances of developing type 2 diabetes.
Gestational diabetes is a condition that occurs in some pregnant women. In this type of diabetes, the body doesn't effectively use the produced insulin. The cause may be metabolic changes that take place due to the effects of the hormonal changes during pregnancy. Gestational diabetes usually disappears after pregnancy, but more than half of the women who experience it eventually develop type 2 diabetes.
Some of the factors that increase the risk of diabetes are a family history of the disease, an age of over 45 years, faulty dietary habits, obesity, sedentary lifestyle, stress, hypertension, and abnormal cholesterol levels in the blood. Certain medications are also known to increase the blood sugar levels. Stressful periods in a person's life cause increased secretion of a hormone cortisol, which is capable of increasing the blood glucose. Inflammation of the pancreas due to an infection or due to alcoholism can predispose diabetes too.
Regular blood sugar monitoring; adherence to a diet plan that includes the right types of food, in moderate proportions, and at regular times; regular exercise; shedding excess weight so as to approach one's ideal weight; quitting smoking and alcoholism; and medication by oral hypoglycemic drugs and/or insulin are the highlights of a diabetes management program. Research has shown that certain natural foods like fenugreek seeds, grapefruit, bitter guard, and the seeds of the black plum are useful in lowering the blood sugar.
Investigations that are used to diagnose and monitor diabetes include fasting blood sugar (FBS), 2-hour postprandial blood sugar (2-hour PPBS), random blood sugar (RBS), oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), and HbA1c (glycosylated hemoglobin). Dilated eye examination is advisable in diabetics because high blood sugar levels are found to damage the tiny blood vessels in the retina, a condition that is medically known as diabetic retinopathy. Diabetes can cause peripheral nerve damage and lead to abnormal sensations or numbness in the extremities. Hence, a diabetic may not realize a foot injury, which may get infected and lead to complications like osteomyelitis, gangrene, or even septicemia.
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