Type 2 Diabetes
What is Type 2 Diabetes?
Diabetes is a disease that occurs when a person’s body becomes incapable of using the energy provided by the food. The body uses a hormone called insulin to transfer the energy (glucose) from the blood stream to the cells in the body, where it is stored. When a person gets diabetes the body does not make enough amount of the insulin or cannot use it properly.
As a result the glucose remains in the blood instead of being transferred to the cells which then causes high levels of blood sugar (hyperglycemia). There are two types of diabetes, type 1 and type 2. Type 1 occurs when the body cannot produce a proper amount of insulin.
In type 2 diabetes the cells in the body do not respond correctly to insulin and this phenomenon is called insulin resistance. Often, people with type 2 diabetes have no symptoms in the beginning. The early symptoms include fatigue, hunger, increased thirst, increased urination or bladder, kidney, skin or other infections that are more frequent or heal slowly.
Why do you get Type 2 Diabetes ?
Type 2 diabetes usually occurs slowly over time and it mostly happens to people who are overweight. Increased amount of fat in the body makes it harder for the cells to use insulin in the correct way and thereby the cells become resistant to insulin. Type 2 diabetes is inherited and therefore people with family history of diabetes are on a higher risk to develop the disease at any time in their lives.
Factors like low activity level, poor diet, high blood pressure, high levels of cholesterol in blood, age above 45 and excess body weight around the waist also play an important role in type 2 diabetes. Once a person gets diabetes it remains for life time but treatment is important at any age. Untreated diabetes causes high levels of blood in a long period of time which can lead to a number of complications, such as eye damage or blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, nerve and blood vessel damage that can lead to the loss of toes or feet and/or problems with gums, including tooth loss.
Diabetes cannot be cured but it can be treated by controlling the blood sugar level either by medication, diet or exercise. Keeping blood sugar levels very close to the ideal levels can minimize the symptoms and can delay or even prevent the complications
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