Diabetes

Diabetes is a condition where the blood sugar in someone’s body is too high. There are two types of diabetes: Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes is when the body isn’t producing any insulin as the cells that produce the insulin are being attacked and destroyed. This type of diabetes affects 10% of diabetics and generally develops during the teenage years or young adulthood. The exact cause of Type 1 diabetes is not known but is because the body’s immune system destroys the insulin cells.
Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes and is when the body doesn’t make enough insulin or the insulin that it does actually make isn’t working properly, resulting in glucose building up. The risk of developing this type of diabetes increases as we get older. Again, the exact cause is unknown but there are a lot of contributing factors to Type 2 diabetes which include, obesity or being overweight (people who are obese are much more prone to developing it than those of a healthy weight), being physically inactive, diet, if it runs in the family. If someone lives a healthy lifestyle with the correct diet and exercises, this could immediately decrease the chances of developing it.

SYMPTOMS OF DIABETES

Symptoms of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes can include, weakness and tiredness, weight loss, the urge to urinate frequently, increased thirst and mood changes.

Treatments

Type 1

Anyone with type one diabetes needs a life-long supply of insulin to be administered into their blood. This can be in the form of short-acting (regular) such as Humulin R and Novolin, rapid-acting such as insulin glulisine (Apidra) and insulin lispro (Humalog), intermediate-acting such as insulin NPH (Novolin N, Humulin N) and long-acting such as glargine (Lantus, Toujeo Solostar), among more.
Insulin can be administered through injections which give you a mixture of insulin types through a thin needle of a pen. You will need to give yourself these injections at least three times a day. Insulin can also be given through a pump which connects a tube of insulin to a catheter inserted under the skin by your abdomen.
Your doctor may also prescribe you with high blood pressure medications such as angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors or angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) in order to aid your kidneys health. To protect your heart, it might be recommended to take baby or regular aspirin. It might be helpful to also take cholesterol-lowering drugs.
You will need to monitor your blood sugar on a regular basis to avoid hypos or hypers and be able to rectify any potential problem.
Eating healthily and keeping a nutritious, low-fat, high fibre diet in order to control your blood sugar level is advisable. It’s important to learn how to count carbohydrates in order to give yourself the right amount of insulin.

Type 2

Keep to a low-fat, high fibre diet and eat fewer animal products, refined carbohydrates and sugary foods.
Exercise can help to control blood sugar levels so try to aim for thirty minutes five days a week. Check your blood sugar levels as your exercising as it can lower the sugar level.
While you can achieve target blood sugar levels through diet and exercise, some type 2 diabetes will need medication and insulin therapy. Drugs that your doctor might prescribe include metformin (Glucophage, Glumetza, etc) to improve sensitivity to insulin, sulfonylureas such as glyburide (DiaBeta, Glynase) to help the body to secrete more insulin, meglitinides such as repaglinide (Prandin) to help secrete insulin faster — among many more medications that help your insulin and blood sugar levels.
You may be given an insulin needle and have to part-take in insulin therapy like type 1 diabetics.
In severe cases where your BMI is greater than thirty five, you may be recommended for weight-loss surgery (bariatric surgery).

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