24 million Americans 20 years old or older have diabetes mellitus (sugar diabetes), representing 8 percent of the population. This surge in the rate of diabetes parallels the massive epidemic of obesity, overweight, and other findings of excessive weight for height.
Excessive body fat is the critical key in the pathogenetic processes tying obesity to diabetes, for in the distension of lipocytes (fat cells) comes an insensitivity of the system to insulin, produced by the pancreas to regulate bood sugar by guiding glucose (sugar) molecules into the fat cells.
Stuffed lipocytes display a relative paucity of insulin receptors on their surfaces, causing an excess of glucose molecules in the blood. This type of hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) is attendant to Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, wherein at presentation to the medical system, there exists insulin in the blood stream, but at levels insufficient to maintain fasting and postprandial (after a meal) blood glucose levels in a safe range. (Type 1 Diabetes mellitus comes on at a younger age and the patient has no insulin in the pancreas or body at presentation to medical providers.)
Prevention of diabetes type 2 is very important, for in attaining a healthy lifestyle, an individual comes to balance calories taken in at meals and snacks and habits, with calories burned through existence and work and recreation. If overweight or obesity are extant, then the scales of energy should be slightly tipped in favor of a gentle weight loss of, say, 1 or 2 pounds per week.
Occasionally, at medical presentation, pharmaceutical intervention is necessary for a Type 2, and the physician will prescribe not only balanced exercise, with dietary and diabetic teaching, but Metformin or Actos or Glyburide or other oral hypoglyemic agent may be prescribed, or a long-acting insulin may be used, such as Lantus, at times may be used.
If the disease progesses, short-acting insulins may be used, for, eventually, in the presence of persistent insulin resistance, the beta cells of the pancreas, which form and secrete insulin, die off, leaving the patient insulin-dependent. Weight loss often occurs, because the energy of carbohydrates taken in is wasted, for not enough insulin is avaiable to send it into fat, liver, and muscle. Thus the entropy of the system (body) rises.
So 30 minutes of exercise a day, at least 5 times a week, losing some weight, if indicated, proper nutrition, and keeping the BMI under 25 and over 20 helps reduce an adult's chance of contracting Diabetes mellitus, Type 2.
Also, another 57 million people in the US have Prediabetes, a condition in which insulin metabolism in the body is not able to keep fasting and post-prandial blood sugars in a healthy range, yet not so high as to be in the Diabetic range.
Preventive treatment is extremely important here, and is the same as iterated in the paragraph immediately above this one, in that prediabetes has a penchant proclivity to proceed to abject Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 if left unattended, and most of the US population with it and in many cases even frank Diabetes are asymptomatic, undiagnosed yet in need of intervention. See, http://www.hhs.gov/news/healthbeat/2009/12/20091201a.html
Comments
I do wish we could make it clear type 1 - type 2 (no offense to those with type2)
Its always so hard to explain to others..
When my type 1 was in 4th grade and her older daughter came home from 8th and explained that the gym teacher said "she'll grow out of it" -- you know the miss-information is extensive.
Thx for your excellent article. Very informative. Finding a cure through medication would be helpful, but as you know, a lot could be done by all of us thru proper diet and exercise. Self discipline however can be tough. But if circumstances exist whereby medication is needed, I wanted to possible help some people out there by letting them know about a site that few people know about, but can help greatly in paying less for all
their medications, diabetes included. I have known as least 10 people it has helped, some diabetic, some with other
prescriptions they get, and hopefully this will help get the word out. The site is www.medpap.ws and tho it's "free," the "catch" is that they want you in their store hoping you will impulse shop and pick up other items while you are there.
One of the oldest marketing ploys in the world, but if you can just use the card....enjoy the savings, and don't buy anything else you don't truly need, you will beat the system.
It's really no surprise that diabetes is on the rise. With the rate at which our waist lines are expanding we are sure to have an increase in many other diseases as well. For an overall healthy lifestyle to prevent or control diabetes, we need to address 4 main factors: nutrition, exercise, stress management and sleep. For more information, see my book, "How To Eat Fried Chicken and Be Thin Too" on Amazon or at strategicbookpublishing.com
Dean, did you hear about the Subway in Kansas City that is creating a Diabetic menu. Very interesting article, you may find it in my wordpress blog at eleshagabriell@wordpress.com
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