Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that occurs either if the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or if the body fails to effectively use the insulin it produces. Also known as diabetes, it is a result of high blood glucose levels. Blood glucose levels are the main source of energy that comes from the food we eat.
The pancreas secretes a hormone called insulin, which helps the glucose from food get into body cells for energy. When the body fails to utilise the insulin effectively, the blood sugar levels rise, which is known as hyperglycemia. Untreated high blood sugar from diabetes has the potential to damage your nerves, eyes, kidneys, and other organs.
There are a few kinds of diabetes:
Type 1 Diabetes: This is an autoimmune disease. It occurs when the body fails to produce insulin. About 10 percent of the people with diabetes have this type. It is unclear what causes this attack; however, it is known that the immune system attacks and destroys the cells within the pancreas. Patients with type 1 Diabetes are required to take insulin injections throughout their lives.
Type 2 Diabetes: This occurs when the body turns resistant to insulin, causing the sugar to build up in the blood. Also known as insulin resistance, there is also a chance that the insulin produced does not match the requirements of the body. In these cases, diabetes can occur at any age but is most prominent with humans who are 40+ in age and accounts for around 90% of all diabetes cases.
This can be controlled through self-care by:
- Physical exercise
- Losing weight
- Quitting smoking
- Consuming a fibre-rich diet
- Medication
- In some cases, external insulin may be required.
Gestational Diabetes
Gestational diabetes is hyperglycemia with blood glucose levels above normal but below the diagnostic range of diabetes. Usually found in pregnant women, it has no symptoms and can be the result of the placenta producing hormones that cause high glucose levels in your blood. However, gestational diabetes usually disappears after pregnancy, but the affected women are at higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Treatments include a healthy diet, exercise, and medication if required.
Prediabetes
A condition where the blood glucose levels are higher than normal but are not high enough for a diagnosis. With lifestyle changes, weight loss, and medication, it’s possible to bring a blood sugar level back to normal.
Causes of Diabetes
Various causes are associated with each type of diabetes.
Type 1 Diabetes
This occurs when your immune system attacks and destroys insulin-producing cells in your body for fighting infection. Type 1 is caused by a combination of genetic susceptibility and environmental factors, though exactly what those factors are is still unclear. Weight is not believed to be a factor in type 1 diabetes.
Type 2 Diabetes
In type 2 diabetes, your cells turn resistant to insulin as your pancreas fails to produce enough insulin to overcome this resistance. Instead of utilizing itself for energy, sugar builds up in your bloodstream.
The reason, however, is uncertain. Although it is believed that genetic and environmental factors play a role in determining type 2 diabetes, people with a family history of type 2 diabetes are prone to developing this disease when compared to others.
Gestational Diabetes
This occurs when the placenta secretes hormones to sustain the pregnancy, which makes your hormones more resistant to insulin.
Usually, the pancreas responds by producing extra insulin to overcome this resistance, but sometimes it fails to keep it. When this occurs, deficiency of glucose causes too much residual sugar in the blood, resulting in gestational diabetes.
Symptoms of Diabetes
The general symptoms of diabetes include:
- Frequent urination
- Excessive thirst
- Weight loss
- Increased Hunger
- Extreme fatigue
- Blurry vision
- Slow-healing wounds
- Tingling or numbness in the feet or toes
Men with diabetes may experience:
- Decreased sex drive
- Erectile dysfunction (ED)
- Poor muscle strength.
Women with diabetes may experience:
- Urinary Tract Infection (UTI)
- Yeast Infections
- Dry, Itchy skin
How to Prevent Type 2 Diabetes: Tips and Tricks
- Avoid sugar and refined carbs in your diet.
- Work out regularly
- Drink more water
- Lose weight, if obese or overweight.
- Quit smoking
- Follow a low-carb and high-fiber diet
- Limit alcohol intake
- Optimize Vitamin D levels
- Consider taking natural herbs like curcumin and berberine.
How Does Exercise Help in Type 2 Diabetes?
If you are active, your body becomes more resistant to insulin, helping you manage your diabetes. It also stimulates a mechanism that allows the muscles to absorb and utilise sugar, even without insulin. Physical activity is also proven to control blood sugar levels, lowering your risks of heart disease and nerve damage.
A diabetic person may take the following steps to control their diabetes:
- You may start by walking for 10 minutes after dinner, gradually building up to 30 minutes most days. You may also try jogging, aerobic activities, and swimming.
- Two or more sessions of resistance training every week help you strengthen your muscles.
- Incorporate yoga into your lifestyle, which yields you calmness and peace and thus lowers your blood sugar levels.
Diabetes and Diet: What To Eat
Your diabetes diet simply means eating healthy in moderation and sticking to regular meal times. Changing your diet may help you lose weight and sometimes, maybe enough to control your diabetes.
These tips can be incorporated into your life for healthy living:
- Eat in moderation, frequently.
- Replace fruits and vegetables with high-calorie foods.
- Eat fibre-rich whole grains as a source of healthy carbohydrates.
- Consume pulses, beans, lentils, chickpeas, and garden peas.
- Replace intake of saturated and trans fats with grilled poultry and fish.
- Select skim (fat-free) milk and low-fat (1%) dairy products, reducing the consumption of cheese and butter.
- Reduce sugar intake and watch out for the food labels.
- Reduce salt intake by avoiding foods with high sodium.
Types of Insulin for Diabetes Treatment:
People with type 1 diabetes and a few people with type 2 diabetes may need to inject or inhale insulin to keep their blood sugar levels from becoming too high.
The types of insulin include:
| Type | Onset Time | Peak Action Time | Overall Effect Time |
| Rapid-acting insulin | 5-15 mins | 30-90 mins | 3-5 hours |
| Short-acting insulin | 30-60 mins | 2-3 hours | 5-8 hours |
| Intermediate-acting | 2-4 hours | 4-12 hours | 10-18 hours |
| Long-acting insulins | 2-10 hours | 6-16 hours | 16-24 hours |
How to Diagnose Diabetes Through Tests?
You can tell if you have diabetes by these three blood tests:
- HbA1c
Calculates the average blood sugar level over two to three months. Check your range here:
<5.7%: Typical
5.7–6.4%: Pre-diabetic
≥6.5%: Diabetes
- Fasting Plasma- Glucose (FPG) test:
Simplest and fastest way to diagnose diabetes. You may check your diabetic level below:
Normal range: 70–99 mg/dL
Prediabetes: 100–125 mg/dL
Diabetes: 126 mg/dL or higher
- Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT):
This test analyzes blood sugar levels after consuming a glucose solution and is used to treat gestational diabetes.
Diabetes or prediabetes may be indicated by a single abnormal result in any of these tests. If you are prediabetic, check your blood sugar at least once a year to ensure you haven’t developed type 2 diabetes. Consult your doctor if you experience any symptoms or have higher blood sugar levels than normal.
