Introduction
Diabetes Mellitus is the scientific name for the common disease Diabetes.
It’s a medical condition where the body’s cells cannot take in and use sugar or where there is not enough insulin being secreted into the body. When this happens, the blood sugar level becomes high and stays that way.
The first tale-tell signs of diabetes are the constant need to urinate (or polyuria), constant thirst (or polydipsia) and constant hunger (or polyphagia).
There are five kinds of diabetes, but three common types. They are:
• Type I Diabetes
• Type II Diabetes
• Gestational Diabetes
The rarer types of diabetes are:
• Bronze Diabetes
• Diabetes Insipidus
A Look At Type I Diabetes
This is when the body produces no level of insulin. It usually develops before a person turns 40 years old and is typically called juvenile or early-onset diabetes. While people have heard of this type of diabetes, it’s not the one that garners the most attention.
Still, that’s not to say it’s not harmful to your health. People who are type 1 diabetic must take insulin injections to ensure sugar absorption for the rest of their lives, as it helps in regulating blood sugar levels. Their doctor will also suggest they follow a strict special diet.
A Look At Type II Diabetes
With this kind of diabetes, the body does either one of two things – doesn’t produce enough insulin for the cells or the cells don’t react well to insulin (meaning they are insulin resistant).
This is the most common kind of diabetes in the population with nine in every 10 people being type II diabetes.
In order to control this kind of diabetes, you must keep an eye on your blood sugar level, start a weight loss program, make changes to your diet and get lots of exercise.
These measures, however, will control it – not cure it. When the cells start to weaken and grow, and the immune system doesn’t work as good as it used to, your diabetes condition will worsen.
Over time, the patient will need to take start taking insulin in tablet form.
The more you weigh, the higher the chance of developing type II diabetes. Why? Obesity causes the body to secrete chemicals that will weaken the body’s cardiovascular and metabolic systems.
However, it’s important you understand that obesity isn’t the only factor in the development of type II diabetes. If you don’t get any kind of exercise and live a sedentary lifestyle, you increase your chances of developing type II diabetes. The wrong foods can also have a negative impact on your lifestyle. Therefore, you need to watch the foods you consume.
A Look At Gestational Diabetes
This diabetes type is seen only in pregnant women. It occurs when a woman has an excessive amount of blood glucose and the body cannot generate enough insulin to use all the sugar. When gestational diabetes isn’t controlled, it can result in childbirth complications.
The baby may be bigger than they should be, which means the woman may need a C-section. Once gestational diabetes is diagnosed, the woman must start using blood-sugar controlling medications.
According to various research, consuming a significant amount of cholesterol and animal fat increases a woman’s chance of developing gestational diabetes. If you plan on becoming pregnant, you must control how much animal fat and cholesterol you consume.
A Look At Bronze Diabetes
Bronze diabetes – also called hemochromatosis – is diagnosed when doctors note the body is absorbing a significant amount of iron from the food you consume. The name comes from what it does to the body – darkens the skin and hyperglycemia.
This type of diabetes is the result of a faulty gene and will eventually lead to potential damage in other bodily organs. Due to the fact that bronze diabetes can cause damage to organs, a liver biopsy must be done to see if damage has taken place.
Bronze diabetes symptoms tend to become noticeable at age 40. Doctors will diagnose people with this condition by doing a serum ferritin and transferrin saturation blood test. It may also be necessary to do a DNA blood test to see if it’s genetic.
A Look At Diabetes Insipidus
This is a rare diabetes type, which results in the imbalance of bodily fluids. Due to the imbalance, you may still be thirsty even if you just drank something. Due to the excess amount of water or beverage you drink, you’re liable to urinate more often.
Diabetes Insipidus, like type 1 diabetes, has no cure, but there are treatments doctors can recommend that alleviate your constant need to drink and reduce how many times you run to the bathroom.
This condition occurs when the body cannot balance its fluid level, but the health problems you can have from it depend on the kind of diabetes insipidus you have:
• Central diabetes insipidus
• Nephrogenic diabetes insipidus
• Gestational diabetes insidious
• Primary polydipsia
A doctor will often diagnose a person with this condition by the symptoms of constant urination and the excessive need to drink.
While gestational diabetes, bronze diabetes and diabetes insipidus are important, they are not as common as types 1 and 2.
