There are in fact two main variations of the disease – Type 1 and Type 2, and they are totally different in root cause. There also exists a type of the disease called gestational diabetes that is only suffered by pregnant women.
To understand the disease, we must first understand the part that insulin plays in our body. When we consume glucose, fructose or carbohydrates, our body breaks them down into glucose within the blood stream. For us to be able to use the glucose to produce energy, our pancreas produces insulin which 'unlocks' receptors in our cells and allows the glucose to enter the cells and be used for energy.
In Type 1 diabetes the body is incapable of producing sufficient insulin to regulate blood sugar levels correctly. It is often called juvenile diabetes or insulin dependent diabetes, and it usually occurs in people under 30 years of age.
The symptoms come on quite quickly and is recognised by severe thirst caused by an excess of glucose in the blood stream. This also results in excessive urination, another symptom. It is a chronic condition – that is, it is a lifelong condition. It appears that the pancreatic cells that normally produce the insulin might have been damaged or destroyed by the body's own immune system.
Those suffering from Type 1 diabetes comprise about 5-10% of diabetes sufferers and it is controlled by administering insulin either by drip feed or more normally by regular injection. There is a danger for type 1 diabetics that they may suddenly lose consciousness and they are also at serious risk of contracting further complications in later life.
There is new technology that has surfaced in recent years where an islet cell transplant is undertaken, and even though the patient is required to take anti-rejection drugs, the new cells are capable of producing insulin and patients involved in the trial have reported significantly reduced need for insulin injection. It is hoped that the injections may eventually be completely eliminated through more transplants of islet cells.
Type 1 diabetics are liable in their later years to suffer from sight problems, micro-vascular disorders, vascular disorders and kidney problems due mainly to deterioration in their blood vessels.
Type 2 diabetes accounts for 90-95% of diabetes cases. Patients with type 2 diabetes can produce insulin, but their cell receptors have become resistant to the chemical. Thus, their body has to produce more and more insulin to be able to 'unlock' the cells so that they can utilise the glucose from the blood stream. Eventually, these patients reach the point where they cannot create enough insulin to reduce the glucose in their blood stream.
Type 2 diabetes affects 15-20% of people over sixty. A large number of adults remain undiagnosed as diabetes sufferers. It is usually discovered during a doctor's check-up following complaints of problems such as chest, urinary of skin infections.
Type 2 diabetes can be managed through diet control and weight reduction or with prescription medicines. Although there is an inherited predisposition to the disease in 80% of cases, it is kick started by being overweight, not taking sufficient exercise and pursuing a diet high in high glycaemic index carbohydrates (white rice, sugar, white bread and fruit).Weight management, exercise and an eating regime low in fructose, sugars and processed carbohydrates are recognised as important techniques when trying to avoid the disease.
Many members of the medical profession are expressing alarm at the recent trend of children being found suffering from Type 2 diabetes. This is thought to be due to the high incidence of childhood obesity, combined with the lack of exercise that overweight children take and the diet they follow that is high in carbohydrates and sugar with a high glycaemic index.
Gestational diabetes affects around 4% of women during their pregnancy. Most women recover from this form of diabetes once the baby has been born, but it does appear to indicate a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in their lives.
The most common symptom of diabetes is constant thirst and subsequent regular urination. Other symptoms include dizziness, unexplained weight loss, constant fatigue, itching and pain in the legs whilst walking.
If diabetes just meant taking insulin for the remainder of your life, it wouldn't be such a serious disorder. Diabetics have a number of increased risks including:
- twice the rate of heart disease compared to non-sufferers
- five times the risk of having a stroke
- the most frequent cause of limb amputations outside of accidents
- blindness; of the new cases of blindness in people from age 24 to 74, diabetes is the leading cause
- the cause of over 33% of new cases of kidney disease and the leading cause of end-stage renal disease.
Consistent and accurate management of blood sugars reduces the odds of any of the above occurring
