Diabetes mellitus is a chronic condition caused by too much glucose (sugar) in your blood. Your blood sugar level can be too high if your body does not make enough of the hormone insulin. Insulin is produced by the pancreas (a gland behind the stomach) and moves glucose out of the blood and into cells, where it is broken down to produce energy.
If diabetes is not treated it can cause long-term health problems because the high glucose levels in the blood damage the blood vessels.
Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic diseases characterized by high blood sugar (glucose) levels, which result from defects in insulin secretion, or action, or both. Diabetes mellitus, commonly referred to as diabetes (as it will be in this article) was first identified as a disease associated with “sweet urine," and excessive muscle loss in the ancient world. Elevated levels of blood glucose (hyperglycemia) lead to spillage of glucose into the urine, hence the term sweet urine.
Diabetes mellitus is a disorder in which blood sugar (glucose) levels are abnormally high because the body does not produce enough insulin.
Diabetes mellitus. Types
simplification of the diagnostic criteria for diabetes mellitus to two abnormal fasting plasma determinations; and a lower cutoff for fasting plasma glucose (126 mg per dL [7 mmol per L] or higher) to confirm the diagnosis of diabetes mellitus. These changes provide an easier and more reliable means of diagnosing persons at risk of complications from hyperglycemia. Currently, only one half of the people who have diabetes mellitus have been diagnosed. Screening for diabetes mellitus should begin at 45 years of age and should be repeated every three years in persons without risk factors, and should begin earlier and be repeated more often in those with risk factors.
Diabetes mellitus Type I
This occurs probably as a consequence of a genetic susceptibility, followed by the onset of autoimmune destruction triggered by some environmental factor such as a viral infection. Heavy lymphocytic infiltrates appear in and around islets. The number and size of islets are eventually reduced, leading to decreased insulin production and glucose intolerance.
Diabetes mellitus Type II
The islets of Langerhans are normal in number or somewhat reduced with type II diabetes mellitus. Fibrosis and deposition of amylin polypeptide within islets are most characteristic of the chronic states of
Diet, is also a major factor responsible for causing diabetes.
Eating too much of Carbohydrates, fats, proteins, are all harmful to the body. Our body in general needs a balanced diet to produce energy for performing vital functions. Too much of food, hampers the pancreas from performing its function of insulin secretion. Hence, with insufficient insulin secretion, the blood sugar level rises, leading to diabetes mellitus. Normally, people are in habit of eating foods rich in refined carbohydrates, like biscuits, bread, cakes, chocolate, ice creams, pudding, etc. So, the incidences of diabetes are increased in such persons.
Furthermore, parents must be educated to take care of their children dietary habits. They should stop their habit of overeating. Childrens should not be given candies, toffees, chocolates, jam, cake, etc, to eat. Instead they must be put on healthy diet, necessary for their proper growth and development. They must be convinced regarding the value of exercise and should know about the ill effects of obesity.
Fortunately, most diabetics give some indication of their underlying condition, such as drinking and urinating excessively, before they develop ketoacidosis. Treating diabetics before they become ketotic is considerably more straightforward, safer, and of course less expensive than taking a "wait-and-see" approach to changes in drinking behavior. Equally important, diagnostic testing may reveal other serious conditions which can cause excessive urination and drinking, such as kidney or liver disease, adrenal hormone or electrolyte imbalances and uterus infections.
Type 2 diabetes, there is a chance that nearly all of their children will have diabetes. If both parents have Type 1 diabetes, fewer than 20 percent of their children will develop Type 1 diabetes. In identical twins, if one twin develops Type 2 diabetes, the chance is nearly 100 percent that the other twin will also develop it. In Type 1 diabetes, however, only 40 to 50 percent of the second twins will develop the disease, indicating that while inheritance is important, environmental factors (for example, too much food, too much stress, viral infection, and so forth) are also involved in the development of Type 1 diabetes.
