More than 17 million Americans suffer from one of the two forms of diabetes. More alarming is the fact that there are around one third of the diabetic adults who do not even know they are diabetic. Therefore, understanding the symptoms and causes of diabetes is of utmost importance if we want to successfully tackle this disease.
There are two types of diabetes - type 1 and type 2. In both types of diabetes the symptoms are quite similar because both result in high blood sugar level.
Symptoms
The symptoms associated with type 1 diabetes are as follows:
- When there is insufficient production of insulin in the body, the body cells do not get the required glucose, which is needed to produce ATP (Adenosin Triphosphate). This then results in nausea and vomiting.
- If one does not get medical help, this will lead to ketoacidosis. In this case body starts to break down the muscle tissues and fat to produce energy. This leads to fast weight loss and dehydration.
The symptoms associated with type 2 diabetes are:
- Polydipsia: when glucose level rises in the blood, the brain sends signals to dilute it. As a result of this, one feels increasingly thirsty.
- The body breaks down fat to produce energy because it is unable to metabolize glucose. Breaking down fat requires more energy and thus one will feel fatigue. .
- Polyuria: In this case the body tries to get rid of high glucose level through urination. This leads to dehydration.
- Polyphegia: It is a type of insulin that regulates hunger in the body. With increased insulin production, one feels more and more hunger.
- Sometimes the body fluid is pulled out of the tissues, including eye’s lenses. This leads to blurry vision, as the eye is not able to focus.
- Fluctuations in the blood sugar level lead to decrease in immunity, which further leads to frequent skin infections and UTI.
- High blood sugar level suppresses the formation of WBC and thus cells are not able to function properly. This is why healing takes longer in a diabetic patient.
Causes For Type 1
- Genetic
- Viral infections can lead to type 1 diabetes
- More common in non-Hispanic and Northern European descent people. Less common in people of Asiatic descent.
- More common in men than in women.
Causes Of Type 2
- High blood pressure
- Drinking lot of alcohol
- Overweight
- Leading a sedentary lifestyle
- High fat level in the body
- Aging
- Certain race groups like, African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanic Americans, and Japanese Americans are more prone to type-2 diabetes than non-Hispanic whites.
A watchful eye on the symptoms can help us detect diabetes at an early stage and get treatment on time. One should remember that diabetes can be fatal if let untreated.