Diabetes Signs – Diabetes Symptoms

Definition:

Diabetes is a hormonal issue with the production and processing of insulin. The deficiency or processing issues with insulin result in the build-up of sugars (glucose) in your body because your body is unable to process them anymore.
If your body cannot produce enough of the hormone insulin or is unable to process it then then your body cannot process the sugars that you consume. These two issues define the two different types of Diabetes that there are:

Type 1 Diabetes

This is where your body no longer produces insulin in your pancreas. This is non-reversible. Type 1 diabetes is most common in the under 40s and accounts for about 15% of all cases of diabetes.

Type 2 Diabetes

This is where your pancreas still produces insulin but not in sufficient quantities or your pancreas produces enough insulin but your body is unable to use it. Type 2 diabetes is most common in the over 40s in the white population and in the over 25s in the black and south Asian populations. Type 2 diabetes accounts for 85% of all cases of diabetes.

Causes :

Type 1 Diabetes – it is known that it is triggered by an auto-immune response where the body destroys all the insulin making cells in the pancreas but why this happens scientists have not yet discovered.
Type 2 Diabetes – there are more than one cause of type 2 diabetes. The most common cause is that the body has a surplus amount of fat, which inhibits the production of insulin, this may occur in people who are overweight. People who are not overweight can also have type 2 diabetes and the cause of this is yet unknown.

Diabetic Symptoms:

Type 1 Diabetes – The symptoms of type 1 diabetes come on rapidly and thus they are very apparent. They include:

• Blurred vision – caused by a build-up of glucose in the eye
• Frequent urination – caused by the kidneys attempting to get rid of excess glucose
• Increased thirst – caused by the body trying to compensate for the increased urination.
• Tiredness – due to the body not being able to convert the glucose it has into energy.
• Wounds healing slowly – due to increased glucose levels in the blood which provide bacteria with food.
• Weight loss – due to the body using its fat reserves to create energy as it cannot use the glucose.
• Thrush – due to an increase in glucose levels in the urine which provide bacteria with food.

Once diagnosed and treated with medication the symptoms of type 1 diabetes are reversed quite quickly. There is no cure for Diabetes so medication is required to treat the symptoms on an on-going basis.

Type 2 Diabetes – The symptoms for type 2 Diabetes are much harder to recognize because the symptoms come on very slowly and sometimes there are no symptoms at all. It can take up to 10 years before someone goes to be diagnosed. The symptoms for type 1 and type 2 diabetes are the same. If the symptoms are recognised early enough and the diabetes has onset by the patient being overweight then the condition can be controlled with a change in diet and exercise. Type 2 diabetes is a progressive condition and there is a point at which medication has to be used to treat it.

 FAQ:

What causes Diabetes?
Type 1 Diabetes is cause by an autoimmune response by the body. Something triggers the body to destroy all the cells in the pancreas, which are designed to create insulin. Scientists know that this is what happens however, they do not know what the trigger within the body is so they are unable to determine a cure at the current time.

Type 2 Diabetes can be caused by 2 different things. Firstly the body’s production of insulin can be inhibited by a person having to higher fat reserves in their bodies i.e. by being overweight. This is not the explanation for all cases though because some people who are not overweight also get type 2 Diabetes. The second cause of type 2 Diabetes is thought to be the body’s inability to use the insulin that it is producing any more.

What kind of foods to eat with type 2 Diabetes?
Type 2 diabetes can be effectively treated at an early stage by changing a patients diet and implementing an exercise routine. The types of food that should be eaten by patients with type 2 Diabetes are:

• More fruit and vegetables (at least 5 portions a day)
• Carbohydrates at every meal (3 meals a day)
• More pulses i.e. beans, lentils and so on
• More oily fish for example Slamon, Mackrel (twice a week)
• Less Fat
• Less Sugar
• Less Alcohol
• Less Salt

Early symptoms of Diabetes?
Type 1 Diabetes onsets extremely fast and the symptoms are obvious; tiredness; increased urination; increased thirst; weight loss; thrush; blurred vision; and wounds healing slowly.
Prediabetes can be a predicator to the onset of type 2 Diabetes. This is usually diagnosed by higher levels of glucose than normal being in the blood and urine but not high enough levels to class it as Diabetes. This condition can lead to type 2 Diabetes but it does not always. It is usually picked up in routine blood and urine tests.
Type 2 Diabetes can go undiagnosed for many years because the type 2 diabetes symptoms are not always apparent. The symptoms can include all of the symptoms for type 1 Diabetes, some of them or none of them.

Diabetes Resources and Organization:

http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/common/Diabetes/basics/327.html
http://www.Diabetes.org.uk/Guide-to-Diabetes/
http://www.diabetes.org/