Diabetes

Diabetes is an illness that affects roughly 371 million people around the world with more than half of the infected being undiagnosed. Nearly 5 million people will die from diabetes this year and half of these 5 million are people under the age of 60 years old. It is estimated that there will be 522 million people infected with Diabetes in the next 10 years. It is a widespread disease and many across the world don’t have proper access to information about it. In this article, the different types of diabetes will be covered as well as their symptoms.

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes is a condition where the body has high sugar levels for prolonged periods of time. This is mainly due to problems with the chemical known as insulin. Insulin is a chemical produced in the pancreas which regulates the sugar in the body. The body gets diabetes when it resists or lacks insulin. This is mainly caused by a failure in the pancreas leading to a decrease in the production of insulin. This can be caused by excessive fat as well as an unhealthy lifestyle.

What is Diabetes type 1?

Type 1 Diabetes is a type of diabetes. It is most commonly found in teens and young adults and makes up about 10% of all diabetes cases. It is caused by an autoimmune reaction, otherwise known as when the body attacks its own cells. The immune system attacks the beta cells which produce insulin. This leads to a significant decrease in the production of insulin and leads to this type of diabetes. Type 1 diabetes can’t be contracted from diet or health-based problems. It is usually genetic but people can go their entire lives without ever triggering this gene. This gene can also be triggered by a virus. Type 1 diabetes has very severe symptoms ranging from excessive weight changes to extreme hunger and thirst. It is one of the most dangerous types of diabetes.

What is diabetes type 2?

Type 2 Diabetes is another type of diabetes. It is commonly found in people above 45 but more children and teens are developing it. Diabetes type 2 is caused by a resistance to insulin in the body. This starts due to the cells in the body not reacting normally to the insulin in the body. This leads to the pancreas overburdening itself and producing more insulin to make the cells respond. However, at some point, the pancreas will stop working due to the excessive burden placed on it. This leads to an increase in insulin which can lead to many harmful side effects such as heart problems, loss of vision, etc. It is the most common type of diabetes with 90% of all diabetic patients.

What is Gestational Diabetes? Gestational Diabetes is diabetes that develops during pregnancy. Pregnancy leads to a lot of hormonal changes which leads to excessive weight changes. This combined with the burden of another human being leads to an increased need for insulin. Sometimes some cells have a resistance to insulin during pregnancy which leads to gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes is a sign that type 2 diabetes is likely as more than 50% of women who had gestational diabetes developed type 2 diabetes. Gestational Diabetes typically has no factors and is typically harmless but tests are required.

Conclusion

In Conclusion, Diabetes is a major disease that plagues close to half a billion people. It is estimated to spread even further due to increasing obesity and unhealthy diets. This medical article was written to educate the reader on the different types of diabetes.