What is diabetes?
Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic diseases characterized by hyperglycemia (glucose), resulting from defects in insulin secretion, or action, or both. Diabetes mellitus, commonly known as diabetes (as it will in this article) was first identified as a disease associated with "sweet urine," and excessive muscle loss in the ancient world. High levels of blood glucose (hyperglycemia) lead to spillage of glucose into the urine, hence the term sweet urine.Normally, levels of blood glucose are tightly controlled by insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas. Insulin lowers the level of glucose in the blood. When the blood sugar (eg, after eating food), insulin released from the pancreas to normalize blood sugar. In diabetic patients, the absence or insufficient production of insulin causes hyperglycemia. Diabetes is a chronic disease, meaning that although it be controlled, it lasts a lifetime.
What is the impact of diabetes?
Over time, diabetes can cause damage to blindness, kidney failure, and nerve. These types of damage are the result of damage to small blood vessels, called microvascular disease. Diabetes is also an important factor in accelerating the hardening and narrowing of the arteries (atherosclerosis), leading to strokes, heart disease and other major diseases of blood vessels. This is known as macrovascular disease. Diabetes affects about 17 million people (about 8% of the population) in the United States. In addition, an estimated 12 million people in the United States have diabetes and do not even know.From an economic perspective, the total annual cost of diabetes in 1997 estimated at 98 billion dollars in the United States. The percapita cost resulting from diabetes in 1997 was $ 10,071.00, while health care costs for people without diabetes incurred a per capita cost of $ 2,699.00. In the same year, 13.9 million days of hospital stay attributed to diabetes, while 30.3 million physician office visits related to diabetes. Remember, these numbers show only population of the United States. Overall, the statistics are staggering.
Diabetes is the third leading cause of death in the United States after heart disease and cancer.
Diabetes Facts
1. Diabetes is a chronic disease associated with abnormally high levels of sugar (glucose) in blood.
2. Insulin produced by the pancreas lowers blood sugar.
3. Absence or insufficient production of insulin causes diabetes.
4. Both types of diabetes are called type 1 (insulin-dependent) and type 2 (non insulin-dependent).
5. The symptoms of diabetes include urine output, thirst and hunger and fatigue.
6. Diabetes is diagnosed by blood sugar (glucose) testing.
7. The main complications of diabetes are both acute and chronic.
- Deeply: dangerously high blood sugar, abnormally low blood sugar because of drugs against diabetes can occur.
- Chronic disease of blood vessels (large and small) that can damage eyes, kidneys, nerves and heart may occur
8. The treatment of diabetes is based on the type and severity of diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is treated with insulin, exercise and diet diabetic. Type 2 diabetes is first treated with weight reduction, a diabetic diet, and exercise. When these measures fail to control high blood sugar, oral medications are used. If oral medications are still insufficient, medications are considered insulin.
{ 0 comments... Views All / Send Comment! }
Post a Comment