Sunday, December 12, 2010

Diatebes

What is diabetes? What causes diabetes?

Diabetes (diabetes mellitus) is classed as a metabolism disorder. Metabolism refers to the way our bodies use digested food for energy and growth. Most of what we eat is broken down into glucose. Glucose is a form of sugar in the blood - it is the principal source of fuel for our bodies.

When our food is digested the glucose makes its way into our bloodstream. Our cells use the glucose for energy and growth. However, glucose cannot enter our cells without insulin being present - insulin makes it possible for our cells to take in the glucose.

Insulin is a hormone that is produced by the pancreas.
After eating, the pancreas automatically releases an adequate quantity of insulin to move the glucose present in our blood into the cells, and lowers the blood sugar level.

A person with diabetes has a condition in which the quantity of glucose in the blood is too elevated / high (hyperglycemia). This is because the body either does not produce enough insulin, produces no insulin, or has cells that do not respond properly to the insulin the pancreas produces. This results in too much glucose building up in the blood. This excess blood glucose eventually passes out of the body in urine. So, even though the blood has plenty of glucose, the cells are not getting it for their essential energy and growth requirements.

There are three main types of diabetes:

Diabetes Type 1 - You produce no insulin at all.Diabetes Type 2 - You don't produce enough insulin, or your insulin is not working properly.Gestational Diabetes - You develop diabetes just during your pregnancy.

Treatment is effective and important

All types of diabetes are treatable, but Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes last a lifetime; there is no known cure. (With Dokudami you can)
The patient receives regular insulin, which became medically available in 1921. The treatment for a patient with Type 1 is mainly injected insulin, plus some dietary and exercise adherence.

Patients with Type 2 are usually treated with tablets, exercise and a special diet, but sometimes insulin injections are also required.

If diabetes is not adequately controlled the patient has a significantly higher risk of developing complications.. Longer term complications could be cardiovascular disease, retinal damage (Eyes), chronic kidney failure, nerve damage, poor healing of wounds, gangrene on the feet which may lead to amputation, and erectile dysfunction.
Who Is At Greater Risk For Type 1 Diabetes?
·  Siblings of people with type 1 diabetes.
·  Children of parents with type 1 diabetes.

Who Is At Greater Risk For Type 2 Diabetes?
·  People with a family history of diabetes.
·  People who are overweight.
·  People who do not exercise regularly.
·  Women who have had a baby that weighed more than 9 pounds at birth.

Warning Signs Of Diabetes

Type 1 Diabetes:
·  Frequent urination.
·  Unusual thirst.
·  Extreme hunger.
·  Unusual weight loss.
·  Extreme fatigue.
·  Irritability.

Type 2 Diabetes:
Any of the type 1 symptoms, plus...
·  Frequent infections.
·  Blurred vision.
·  Cuts/bruises that are slow to heal.
·  Tingling/numbness in the hands or feet.
·  Recurring skin, gum, or bladder infections.

Profile Of The Diagnosed

There are nearly 1.2 million people in Malaysia who have diabetes. Diabetes is actually a general term for a number of separate but related disorders. These disorders fall into two main categories:
·  type 1, which usually occurs during childhood or adolescence, and
·  type 2, the most common form of the disease, usually occurring after age 30.


Diabetes In Youth

How Are Young People Affected?

The risk of developing type 1 diabetes is higher than virtually all other severe chronic diseases of childhood.

Peak incidence occurs during puberty, around 10 to 12 years old in girls and 12 to 14 years old in boys.

Type 1 diabetes tends to run in families. Brothers and sisters of children with type 1 diabetes have about a 10 percent chance, or a 20-fold increased risk, of developing the disease.

The identical twin of a person with type 1 diabetes has at least 50 times the risk of developing type 1 diabetes than a child in an unaffected family.

In type 1 diabetes, incidence is highest among whites. Scandinavian countries have the highest incidence in the world, approximately 30 cases per 100,000 children.

The symptoms for type 1 diabetes can mimic the flu in children.

Diabetes And Seniors

How Are Seniors Affected?

Diabetes prevalence increases with increasing age.

Approximately half of all diabetes cases occur in people older than 55.

People with diabetes are more likely to be institutionalized in nursing homes than are people without diabetes.

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