Diabetes
Diabetes is a long-term (chronic) illness that affects how your body converts food into energy.
The majority of the food you consume is converted by your body into sugar (glucose), which is then released into your bloodstream. Your pancreas releases insulin when your blood sugar levels rise. In order for blood sugar to enter your body's cells and provide energy, insulin functions like a key.
The pancreas produces the hormone insulin, which functions as a key to allowing glucose from food to enter the body's cells. All foods containing carbohydrates are converted to glucose in the blood. Insulin facilitates the uptake of glucose by cells.
Blood glucose levels rise as a result of ineffective insulin production and utilization (known as hyperglycemia). Long-term elevated glucose levels lead to cellular deterioration and organ and tissue failure.
Diabetes Types
Following are the types of diabetes.
Type 1 Diabetes
The primary cause of type 1 diabetes is autoimmune response (the body attacks itself by mistake). This response prevents your body from producing insulin. It affects between 5 to 10 percent of those who have diabetes. Type 1 symptoms frequently appear suddenly. It is common in children, teenagers, and young adults. If you're suffering from type 1 diabetes, you must take insulin every day.
Type 2 Diabetes
Your body struggles to properly utilize insulin in type 2 diabetes, making it difficult to maintain normal blood sugar levels. It affects 90–95% of patients with diabetes. It takes years to develop, and it is more common in adults (but more and more in children, teens, and young adults). If you are at risk, it is crucial to have your blood sugar tested because you might not exhibit any symptoms. By adopting healthy lifestyle adjustments like these, one can avoid or postpone it.
- Losing weight.
- Eating a balanced diet.
- Being energetic.
Gestational Diabetes
In pregnant women who have never had diabetes, gestational diabetes can develop. If you have gestational diabetes, your unborn child may be more susceptible to health issues. After your baby is born, gestational diabetes typically disappears. However, it raises your chance of developing type 2 diabetes in later life. Your child has a higher chance of being obese as a youngster or adolescent and going on to acquire type 2 diabetes.
Prediabetes
Blood sugar levels are higher than normal in prediabetes, but not high enough for the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. Additionally, your risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke increases if you have prediabetes. However, if you have prediabetes, a lifestyle modification program approved by the CDC can assist you in making healthy decisions to reverse the condition.
Prevention
There are no preventive factors still known for type 1 and gestational diabetes.
However, one can delay or avoid type 2 diabetes with the use of simple lifestyle changes. Those who want to prevent it and its complications should:
- Attain and maintain a healthy body weight;
- Engage in frequent, moderate-intensity physical activity for at least 30 minutes on most days.
- To control weight, one must increase activity, and eat a nutritious diet free of sugar and saturated fats.
- Abstain from cigarette use because it raises the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular disease.