Diabetes, its types, treatment

Diabetes is a metabolic condition. It is a long-term chronic disease that impairs the body's capacity to utilise the energy found in carbohydrate diets. However, without insulin, the body has a difficult time controlling the amount of sugar in the blood (Cornero & Hoopla digital, 2015, p. 85). It produces an increase in blood sugar levels, which are then excreted by the body in the form of urine, and the cells do not receive enough glucose for growth and development.  There are a number of signs and symptoms associated with diabetes including; an urgent need to urinate, constant tiredness, hunger pangs, sudden weight loss, delayed healing of wounds, excessive thirst, skin problems, numbness in the toes and feet and yeast infection. Diabetes has some health risks and complications associated with it. Eye complications are common with people suffering from diabetes. Foot problems is another complication which is common to people with diabetes ("Diabetes Symptoms: Early Warning Symptoms & Signs of Diabetes," 2017). Other complications include; heart problems, hypertension, mental problem, skin complication, gum disease and hearing loss among others.

Types of diabetes

They are about three types of diabetes. There is diabetes type 1 also known as juvenile diabetes since in most cases it manifests itself in the young age of an individual ("Diabetes Mellitus Types 1 and 2," 2017, p. 234). It is caused by the condition of the antibodies to attack the pancreas of the body causing the pancreas to fail to produce insulin hormone. Also, it is caused by predisposition of the genetic makeup or presence of damaged beta cells in the pancreas. The diseases can be controlled by careful meal planning which involves eating a balanced diet, taking regular exercise, having medication and taking insulin injections as directed by the physician besides having regular blood sugar tests.

The main type of diabetes that is found in almost 90% of the people suffering from diabetes is the type 2. It is highly caused by the lifestyle of the individual. Those people who are obese and with poor eating habits have high chances of being affected by the disease (Dunning, 2013, p. 54). Age is also another factor that contributes to being affected by type 2 diabetes. As individuals get older the more exposed to the illness, they become. Research also indicated that men with low levels of testosterone have a higher risk of getting diabetes.

Gestational diabetes affects females during pregnancy. Diabetes can be controlled by healthy eating and have regular exercise as instructed by the doctor. If the disease is not controlled, this can result in complications while giving birth.

Control and treatment of diabetes

All the types of diabetes are incurable, and they can only be controlled. However, some individuals can manage to get minimize or even get rid of the symptoms by having regular exercise, maintain healthy body weight and eating a healthy diet. Patients with type 1 diabetes are required to have regular injections of insulin as directed by the physician. Also, people with diabetes are advised to have a regular blood test so that they can keep track of their blood sugar level.















Reference list

Cornero, J., & Hoopla digital. (2015). Diabetes. United States: Dreamscape Media, LLC.

Diabetes Mellitus Types 1 and 2. (2017). SpringerReference. doi:10.1007/springerreference_225075

Diabetes Symptoms: Early Warning Symptoms & Signs of Diabetes. (2017). Retrieved from http://www.jdrf.org/t1d-resources/symptoms/

Dunning, T. (2013). Diabetes Education: Art, Science, and Evidence. Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell.