Diabetes is a disorder of the metabolism caused as a result of the way our bodies use digested food for growth and energy. Our bodies use glucose, a form of sugar which our digestive system has broken down from the food we eat, which is then transported around the body via the bloodstream. As the main source of fuel for the body, glucose must get to where it is needed but diabetes stops this process from happening. When the glucose fails to leave the bloodstream as it should, it causes high blood sugar levels.
If you do not know much about this problem, there is some basic information below. Mainly affecting children and young adults, type 1 or juvenile onset diabetes occurs when insulin production stops completely; this means insulin must be given to the diabetic on a daily basis for them to live. Insulin works like a catalyst, enabling the glucose produced by food to be absorbed by the cells and used as energy. Adult onset diabetes affects older people as the name suggests but differs from type one; it results when the body either cannot produce enough insulin or does not use the insulin it makes properly.
To stay alive we need energy, something which is supplied in abundance by everyday foods like various pastas, bread, potatoes, rice and fruit for instance. Some serious conditions can result from excess levels of glucose in the blood including blindness, heart and kidney disease and even the removal of limbs. Specialists in diabetes will tell you that provided you do exactly what your care and management program tells you to do, your condition will start to improve; these conditions will vary form person to person but most should see improvements with some complaints halted altogether. It is possible to live a relatively normal life provided you stick to the plan laid out by your doctor; this includes watching your blood sugar levels, blood fat and cholesterol in addition to quitting smoking.
Apart from this, your blood pressure and weight should not go above the limits your doctor advised. The bad news about this is diabetes a life long condition; the USA is particularly badly hit with over 5.5 million sufferers. The frightening thing is that it is estimated that at least the same number of people has this condition but just don’t know it yet; each year there are over six hundred thousand new cases. Officially, the number of deaths each year directly attributable to diabetes is 34,000 although in reality this figure is closer to 320,000 individuals; whilst not as a direct result, it is a significant contributing factor in a large number of these deaths.
