Type 2 Diabetes

Having spoken about Type 1 Diabetes and sugar high's and low, i thought i would continue my theme. I apologise for not posting over the weekend, i was on my Duke of Edinburgh practice walk, and very achey today.

Type 2 is the most common form of diabetes; it’s similar to type 1 in the fact that it’s a chronic illness and blood sugar levels are abnormal. Type 2 is an insulin deficient disease: insulin is a hormone secreted by the pancreas and with type 2 diabetes the body does not produce enough insulin so there is too much insulin in the blood, therefore blood sugar remains high. Type 2 can also be described as an insulin resistance disease, where the body cells do not react to insulin so the body is unable to use if efficiently. Therefore this differs from Type 1 where no insulin is secreted due to the destruction of Beta cells.

The cause of Type 1 and Type two are very different, although both are affected by genetics, Type 1 is an auto immune disease and Type 2 is majorly influenced by diet and lifestyle. Genetics include age and gender however lifestyle includes diet, obesity and there appears to be a link between lack of sleep and Type 2 diabetes.

Symptoms: (These are very similar to Type 1)including increased thirst, frequent urinations, feeling tired and weight loss. It is very dangerous to leave diabetes untreated (it’s estimated that 850,000 people are left undiagnosed) because high sugar levels can damage blood vessels nerves and organs. People with diabetes are five times more chance of having heart disease; they are at a bigger risk to atherosclerosis resulting in poor blood supply as it involves narrowing of blood vessels so therefore there’s a higher risk of Angina. Nerve damage in blood vessels can cause burning pain in toes or fingers, or damage to nerves in digestive system can lead to vomiting, nausea, diarrhoea and constipation. Being diabetic can lead to blurry vision due to blood vessels in the retina of the eye being damaged, due to the vessel being blocked and therefore a reduced amount of light can pass through. If the blood vessels in the kidney become blocked then the kidneys will become less effective and in serious cases result to kidney failure. Foot ulcers can develop from damage to nerves in the foot and poor blood circulation. During pregnancy it is important for women to closely monitor blood sugar levels because in the early stages it can lead to the baby having defects or leading to miscarriage or stillbirth.

Treatment: the first step is changing lifestyle which includes losing weight, regular exercise and eating well. The disease usually gets progressively worse, so this may longer be enough, so patients would have to turn to medication which would first be in the form of tablets but may later lead to insulin injections (like type 1.)

Sources: http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Diabetes-type2/Pages/Introduction.aspx

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diabetes_mellitus_type_2