Explain The Risk Of Diabetes Essay
Diabetes and the risk that comes with it
Carl L. Tabb
SCI/163
August 2, 2011
Diabetes and the risk that comes with it
23.6 million Americans have diabetes in all ages ranges says The National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse. Diabetes occurs when your body’s sugar levels are abnormally high or the body is not responding to insulin. . Insulin is produced by our body’s to regulate our blood sugar levels. In Greece the word diabetes means “to flow through” and in the Latin culture is means “sweet”. There are three types, Type 1, Type 2 and Gestational. Type 1 is an immune disorder; Type 2 is a metabolic disorder and gestational happens while pregnant. Type 1 is only about 5% of the cases but is still just as dangerous even more serious. The body is just not producing enough insulin to regulate the sugar levels. Type 1 can appear suddenly. The immune system attacks and destroys the normal body cells. By destroying those cells the lower the body’s insulin and the higher the blood sugar will raise and may be permanent. People with Type 1 diabetes must monitor their diet very closely and will require daily injections or infusions. …show more content…
Type 2 is the most common and it happens when the body builds a resistance to the effects of insulin or the body is just not producing enough insulin needed to sustain normal sugar levels.
The levels of insulin in the body range from low to high, sometimes even normal, so it must be monitored closely. When the body starts to resist insulin the levels will rise. Now that the levels are high the body must go into over drive and the blood cells work harder. The cells either get too tired to continue in over drive or the body becomes resistant. This all happens over time. Shots of insulin are sometimes needed between two and three times daily. Before Type 2 was only common in adults over 40 years of age but is now affecting the youth. Studies are now linking obesity and Americans being overweight to Type 2
diabetes.
Gestational diabetes happens to 3 to 8% of pregnant women. When pregnant hormone levels change and sometimes causes metabolic stress. The mother can suffer problems like high blood pressure, high blood acidity and she can also have a difficult labor. The unborn child can develop problems as well such as malformation of the nervous system, heart, respiratory stress, and can grow very large sometimes causing death. Some doctors believe it goes away after birth of the child but in some cases the women will develop Type 2 diabetes. Diabetes is treatable and can be caught early. Risk assessments can be done at home, some risk factors are lack of physical activity, being overweight, having a low fiber diet, and sometimes it may just be your family history. You cannot change your family history but all the others are fixable. A quick assessment can be going through a symptoms list. The common symptoms are, being thirsty all the time, having to excessively urinate, weight loss, fatigue, nerve damage, blurred vision, increase infections and wounds healing poorly. If you have these concerns you may want to go get a test done by your physician. There are two tests to screen for pre-diabetes an oral and the other a fasting blood test. The oral test is called Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT). This test is given over a two hour period. The patient will drink an orange fluid which has high levels of concentrated glucose. Then the patient must wait two hours and then are given a blood test. The other is called Fasting Plasma Glucose test (FPG). With this test the patient is told no eating overnight and they must return in the am for a blood to be taken. Some things you can do to improve your life and lower your risk is to stay as healthy as you can, eat smarter to maintain a healthy weight, stop smoking, decrease drinking alcohol or cut it out altogether, increase your movement during the day, and get plenty of sleep.
Knowing and understanding the chronic diseases can save your life. If sugar levels are too high this may cause heart attacks, kidney failure, blindness, strokes, loss of limbs and even death. Studies show that 65% of Americans with diabetes die from stroke or heart attack. If more information is needed you can contact The National Institutes of Health, The American Diabetes Association, and The National Diabetes Education Program named “Small Steps, Big Rewards.”
Carl L. Tabb
SCI/163
August 2, 2011
Diabetes and the risk that comes with it
23.6 million Americans have diabetes in all ages ranges says The National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse. Diabetes occurs when your body’s sugar levels are abnormally high or the body is not responding to insulin. . Insulin is produced by our body’s to regulate our blood sugar levels. In Greece the word diabetes means “to flow through” and in the Latin culture is means “sweet”. There are three types, Type 1, Type 2 and Gestational. Type 1 is an immune disorder; Type 2 is a metabolic disorder and gestational happens while pregnant. Type 1 is only about 5% of the cases but is still just as dangerous even more serious. The body is just not producing enough insulin to regulate the sugar levels. Type 1 can appear suddenly. The immune system attacks and destroys the normal body cells. By destroying those cells the lower the body’s insulin and the higher the blood sugar will raise and may be permanent. People with Type 1 diabetes must monitor their diet very closely and will require daily injections or infusions. …show more content…
Type 2 is the most common and it happens when the body builds a resistance to the effects of insulin or the body is just not producing enough insulin needed to sustain normal sugar levels.
The levels of insulin in the body range from low to high, sometimes even normal, so it must be monitored closely. When the body starts to resist insulin the levels will rise. Now that the levels are high the body must go into over drive and the blood cells work harder. The cells either get too tired to continue in over drive or the body becomes resistant. This all happens over time. Shots of insulin are sometimes needed between two and three times daily. Before Type 2 was only common in adults over 40 years of age but is now affecting the youth. Studies are now linking obesity and Americans being overweight to Type 2
diabetes.
Gestational diabetes happens to 3 to 8% of pregnant women. When pregnant hormone levels change and sometimes causes metabolic stress. The mother can suffer problems like high blood pressure, high blood acidity and she can also have a difficult labor. The unborn child can develop problems as well such as malformation of the nervous system, heart, respiratory stress, and can grow very large sometimes causing death. Some doctors believe it goes away after birth of the child but in some cases the women will develop Type 2 diabetes. Diabetes is treatable and can be caught early. Risk assessments can be done at home, some risk factors are lack of physical activity, being overweight, having a low fiber diet, and sometimes it may just be your family history. You cannot change your family history but all the others are fixable. A quick assessment can be going through a symptoms list. The common symptoms are, being thirsty all the time, having to excessively urinate, weight loss, fatigue, nerve damage, blurred vision, increase infections and wounds healing poorly. If you have these concerns you may want to go get a test done by your physician. There are two tests to screen for pre-diabetes an oral and the other a fasting blood test. The oral test is called Oral Glucose Tolerance Test (OGTT). This test is given over a two hour period. The patient will drink an orange fluid which has high levels of concentrated glucose. Then the patient must wait two hours and then are given a blood test. The other is called Fasting Plasma Glucose test (FPG). With this test the patient is told no eating overnight and they must return in the am for a blood to be taken. Some things you can do to improve your life and lower your risk is to stay as healthy as you can, eat smarter to maintain a healthy weight, stop smoking, decrease drinking alcohol or cut it out altogether, increase your movement during the day, and get plenty of sleep.
Knowing and understanding the chronic diseases can save your life. If sugar levels are too high this may cause heart attacks, kidney failure, blindness, strokes, loss of limbs and even death. Studies show that 65% of Americans with diabetes die from stroke or heart attack. If more information is needed you can contact The National Institutes of Health, The American Diabetes Association, and The National Diabetes Education Program named “Small Steps, Big Rewards.”