What really is this Diabetes and why should we be concerned about it?
Diabetes Mellitus, or simply diabetes,
is a disease that is metabolic in nature. Simply put, Diabetes is a condition that
results from either an impaired production of the body’s sugar-regulating
hormone in the pancreas or when the body cannot use this hormone; the effect of
which results in an increased sugar level in the blood.
There are 2 types of diabetes simply
referred to as Type 1 and Type 2. The key distinction between the two is that Type
1 diabetes is caused by an insufficient insulin in the body (due to the
impaired production) while Type 2 is brought about by the weakened insulin resistance
due to different reasons as people age. With Type 2 diabetes, there is enough
insulin in the circulation but the body cannot utilize it for some reasons.
But before we go any further, let
us first discuss: what is this insulin that
we are referring to?
Insulin is the hormone responsible
for converting the starch and sugar that we eat into a form of energy that the
body can use for our daily activities. If we don’t have it or it is
insufficient in amount, sugar will be retained in the blood stream. Because of elevated
sugar levels, blood becomes more viscous and consequently, if not properly
managed, can lead to other life-threatening health conditions.
According to the World Health
Organization (WHO), in the year 2000, there were around 171 million people diagnosed
with diabetes. Nowadays (just 12 years
after), it is alarming how the figures have amplified by more than a 100% and diabetes
cases around the world are now being
tallied at 346 million...and counting. Between Type 1 and Type 2, the latter is
more prevalent as it comprises 90% of the total cases of Diabetes Mellitus and
the average age of people with diabetes are around 40 to 59 years old. In the
United States, 30.3 Million are affected with diabetes or 10% of the diabetic
population.
Experts say that the most
common cause of diabetes is lifestyle factors such as lack of exercise or physical
activities, obesity, unhealthy eating specially with sweets and soda and
stress.
While a lot of people may be
preoccupied with preparations from different epidemic diseases that are
terrifying, isn’t it about time that we also give as much attention with diseases
that are chronic in nature but may cause serious consequences on our health? One
good example is diabetes. The sudden
rise in Diabetes Mellitus cases is alarming and tells us that it is something
that should not be ignored.
People affected with diabetes
come from different walks of life – popular celebrities, rich and poor, old and
young – anyone can be afflicted with it. Contrary to the common notion, eating
sweets is not the only reason for diabetes onset. Anything in excess can be
harmful to us and that is why we need to make sure that we take a close watch
on our health by avoiding unhealthy lifestyle which can help manage, if not
prevent, the onset of diabetes mellitus.
