A look at Type 2 Diabetes - Part I

Type 2 Diabetes is normally diagnosed after a blood test. Many times these tests are for other reasons or normal routine exams. Type 2 Diabetes can occur after the age of 45, and is normally referred to as ‘age onset diabetes’; therefore, it is suggested that you should have regular yearly health exams. Having a health exam will not stop you from getting diabetes, but will help in early diagnoses and treatment. It can even give alerts to early signs of high blood sugar levels and help with control of the problem. Normally type 2 diabetes does not require insulin injections but can be handled with diet and/or oral medications.

The definition of Diabetes by The Concise Heritage dictionary is, “Any of several metabolic disorders marked by excessive discharge of urine with excessive thirst”. Does this mean that because you drink water all the time you are Diabetic? No! It does not necessarily apply without signs of other symptoms.

Those symptoms can include:

• Frequent urination
• Excessive thirst which causes increased water intake
• Excess sugar in urine
• Weight loss
• Increased appetite
• Elevated glucose in blood
• Blurred vision when glucose is very high
• Fatigue, Lethargy, with the possibility of coma onset

Diabetes, is a degenerative medical condition, in other words it is a progressive disease. When we speak of it being progressive, it simply means that, when left undetected or untreated it will get worse. Untreated, it can create a multitude of problems including but not limited to loss of limbs (normally feet or legs from infection), loss of eyesight or blurred vision, a build up of plaque in arteries which can cause heart disease and heart attack, kidney disease, high blood pressure, stroke, coma and even early death.

Wait! Early death you say? What can you do to avoid that? After all, no one wants to die earlier than necessary or have severe health problems while they are alive. What if you already have the problem? Or what if you have a family member who is diabetic now? How can you keep from developing Type 2 diabetes?

All good questions, let’s explore them and others.

Diabetes is not only degenerative but, because it normally lasts the life time of the person that develops either type of diabetes, it is considered a chronic disease. So now we have a degenerative chronic disease to control. We need to understand how it happens, what can be done to either avoid it if possible, or at least to control the symptoms and thereby control the disease.

Our bodies have a normal function that controls blood sugar; blood sugar is what our body uses to produce glucose; glucose is our body’s food - what we need for energy. If we take in too much, i.e. that hot fudge sundae you had last night, with the sprinkles! Simply put, our blood sugar then starts over flowing. If this happens too often it can lead to cell damage. Insulin is produced by the pancreas, an organ located just behind the stomach, and it goes into high gear to control the excess sugar. Insulin turns sugar into glucose and helps the body cells to absorb glucose, the energy food it needs. Blood sugar is then lowered and the pancreas stops the production of insulin. The glucose that is not used is then expelled out of the body through the urine.

A defective pancreas causes a change in the production of insulin. When this happens cells can no longer absorb glucose or insulin. Defective insulin can’t do its job correctly and causes the cells to starve even though there is an abundance of glucose. This causes Hyperglycemia (the opposite of Hypoglycemia) and Diabetes will follow. Some people develop insulin resistance, (not good). The cells for one reason or another resist the care insulin wants to give them. Then if not detected, as years pass the insulin resistance turns into Type 2 Diabetes.

Diabetes is a chronic progressive metabolic disease, which is serious and should be treated that way. If you experience any of the symptoms or have family members (blood relatives) that have either type of diabetes, you should consult with your Doctor. Have a blood sugar test done both fasting and non-fasting. Normal blood sugar levels found after an over night fast are in the range of 100 to 120 mg/dl. If after two tests that are above 140 mg/dl, diabetes is diagnosed.