Gestational Diabetes Research Paper

Diabetes is something that not only affects older people, but also affects younger people as well. It does not matter what age you are, it can happen to anyone. My focus is to introduce the different types of diabetes, and how we can decrease the number of people that develop it.

There are several types of diabetes that I would like to discuss , Gestational diabetes, type 2 diabetes and finally, diabetes type 1. The first one that I would like to discuss is gestational diabetes. In this type of diabetes, women who are pregnant, can develop diabetes at any stage during their pregnancy. With this type of diabetes not only does the disease affect the women, but it also affects the fetus as well. During routine pregnancy testing a woman’s glucose level is checked using a standard blood draw. If this reading comes back abnormal, then a 1, 2, or 3 hour glucola test is performed to make a final diagnosis of diabetes. Sometimes though , depending on the levels of the reading, a doctor will order a diabetic education class with a
dietician to discuss ways to manage and how eat and maintain adequate sugar levels. If this is tried and there is no success with lowering sugar levels, then medicine is given to help along with diet and exercise.

If Gestational diabetes is left untreated during the pregnancy it can cause the baby to be too large or even worse stillbirth. Ways to prevent this condition during pregnancy is keep a healthy weight and exercising before you become pregnant and watching what you eat while you are pregnant. Overall this condition affects 3-9% of pregnancies. Only 1% are under the age of 20 are affected and women that are over the age of 44 there is a 13% chance for them to develop Gestational diabetes during the pregnancy.

The next type of diabetes that I would like to discuss is Type 2 diabetes This is the most common type of diabetes.. With type 2 diabetes the body does not use insulin properly. The symptoms include unexplained weight loss, increased thirst, and sores that do not heal. These symptoms come on slowly over time, and may be able to be stopped dead in its tracks if diet and exercise is practiced everyday by the patient. If the person with this type of diabetes is left untreated. The long term effects may include blindness, poor blood flow that can lead to diabetic neuropathy, sores that will not heal and even amputation of limbs. In most causes Type 2 occurs when someone is obese and does not exercise enough. However, family history plays a major role in developing the disease. It is estimated on average about 90% of cases are type 2 and the other 10% is type 1. Some of the medications that a given for type 2 include Metformin which is very well used but has a lot of side effects. Some of the other medications that may be used are Glipizide and Glimepiride. When these medications are used properly on a daily basis with the proper diet and exercise, this can help keep the disease controlled.

Finally, the last type of diabetes is diabetes type 1 which is the worse one to have.
Type one usually appears in children or young adults. In this stage the body does not produce enough insulin. Therefore, sense the body does not produce enough insulin the results are high blood sugar. Some symptoms may include frequent urination, weight loss, increased hunger, blurry vision, and being tired all the time. It is unknown what causes type 1 diabetes, but it is believed that it may be genetic. There is no way to treat it, the only treatment is with insulin which makes the symptoms subside and helps the symptoms to stay balanced. The insulin helps control the amount of glucose that is in the blood stream. If this is left untreated, it can cause various complications, such as heart disease, kidney failure, stroke and even foot ulcers. It is estimated that 5-10% are type one diabetes cases. It is unknown how many it affects
globally.

How can we prevent younger kids from developing these conditions? Well, some ways that I believe that we can help them are by make their lunches more healthier but at the same timey good to eat. We have already tried to fix the lunches to where they are more healthy, but the kids don’t enjoy the food, when I was in high school, Michelle Obama introduced the healthy lunches in schools(Nationalreview, Julie KellyJeff Stier, September 9, 2015). I found the lunches not so good, and often at times did not eat. I feel this is something that we should work on to make it more enjoyable for the kids. Also the kids and adults need to be more active. Exercise plays a vital role in maintaining healthy lifestyles. I believe parents should make some sort of exercise routine with their children at a very young age (Anon. 2015).There are many ways that a family can stay active, such as, swimming, riding bikes, taking walks, and just being up and about. I think people get in the habit of watching tv and just get in the routine of doing nothing. Between ongoing studies such as Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology have almost come up with a Type 1 diabetes insulin shots that they depend on daily. I think that eventually, a cure will be found, but until then, we as a nation need to help educate and push forward to succeed and defeating a cure for diabetes.