The most common misconception about “DIABETESâ€
Diabetes is a disorder of the metabolism characterized by high blood sugar due to a disruption in the capacity of the body to handle carbohydrates properly. On top on being the leading cause of both blindness and kidney failure, diabetes can cause nerve damage and circulation disruption which put people at greater risk for heart disease and stroke Despite the tremendous burden Diabetes place on society, many people harbor several misconceptions about the disease.
Misconception #1:
Diabetes is a disease that kids get, therefore if you didn't get it then, you don't need to be concern about it.
Misconception #2:
Diabetes is an old person's disease and middle-age people do not need to worry about it.
Misconception #3:
When older people get diabetes, it is mild, so you don't have to pay much attention.
Dilemma
There are several types of diabetes but for the sake of this article we will be talking about type 1 and type 2. Both kinds of presentation involve elevated blood sugar levels and abnormal fat and protein metabolism.
Type 1 diabetes accounts for only 5% to 10% of diabetic patients and occur most often by young adulthood (once called juvenile-onset diabetes).
Type 2 diabetes, previously called non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) or adult-onset diabetes, is responsible for a weeping 90% to 95% of all diagnosed cases in adults. While Type 2 usually appears after age 45, half of all people with the disease develop it before age 60.
Background:
After eating, the amount of carbohydrates (sugar) in your blood rises, even if you haven't actually eaten sugar. As a result, your pancreas secretes insulin, a hormone that escorts sugar into hungry cells that either burn it for energy or store it for later use. Insulin can facilitate the transport of sugar to any number of places, ranging from your liver and muscles to other bodily cells, including fat cells.
In Type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune reaction destroys the pancreatic beta cells, the only cells in the body capable of producing hormone insulin that regulates blood glucose (sugar). People with this type of diabetes needs insulin injection to survive, without insulin injections, death may occur in a matte of days.
Insulin resistance is a major hallmark of Diabetes Type 2; it's a disorder in which the cells do not use insulin properly leading to a gradual loss of the pancreas' ability to produce more insulin in response to a higher demand.
Type 2 diabetes is associated with many risk factors including, elderly, obesity, positive family history of diabetes, previous history of gestational diabetes, impaired glucose metabolism, physical inactivity and a race/ethnicity.
Because Type 2 diabetes may not need insulin shots, many people wrongly assume that the disease is not serious.
Because Type1 diabetes lack entirely of insulin the onset is usually abrupt with obvious symptoms such as extreme thirst, frequent urination, blurred vision or unexplained weight loss.
In Type 2, the symptoms takes longer to show up because the glucose levels rise slowly since the patients has some insulin in their systems. As result, half of people suffering from Type 2 diabetes don't know they have it until complications start showing up and consequently, they go untreated for a long time putting them at greater risk for more complications.
Testing Guidelines
The American Diabetes Association recommends that all Americans 45 yrs or older should be screened for diabetes at least once every three years. Testing should be considered at a younger age or be carried out more often in individuals with a BMI ≥25 and those with one or more of the other risk factors.
The fasting plasma glucose(FPG) test is the best screening test for diabetes because it is easier, faster to perform, more convenient and acceptable to patients, and less expensive. It also requires an overnight fast but the patient doesn't have to drink the sweet liquid or wait two hours like the old oral glucose-tolerance test (OGTT).
An FPG ≥126 mg/dl is an indication for retesting, which should be repeated on a different day to confirm a diagnosis. If the FPG is <126 mg/dl and there is a high suspicion for diabetes, an OGTT should be performed. A 2-h post load value in the OGTT ≥200 mg/dl is a positive test for diabetes and should be confirmed on an alternate day). Fasting is defined as no consumption of food or beverage other than water for at least 8 h before testing.
Non-diabetic individuals with an FPG ≥100 mg/dl but less than 126 mg/dl are considered to have IFG (impaired fasting glucose), and those with 2-h values in the OGTT ≥140 mg/dl but less than 200 mg/dl are defined as having IGT (impaired glucose tolerance).
Patients with IFG and/or IGT are now referred to as having "pre-diabetes," indicating the relatively high risk for development of diabetes in these patients. Normal glycemia is defined as plasma glucose levels less than 100 mg/dl in the FPG test and a 2-h post load value less than 140 mg/dl in the OGTT.
If necessary, plasma glucose testing may be performed on individuals who have taken food or drink shortly before testing. Such tests are referred to as casual plasma glucose or random measurements and are given without regard to time of last meal. A casual plasma glucose level more or equal to 200 mg/dl with symptoms of diabetes is considered diagnostic of diabetes. This measurement needs to be repeated and confirm with a second FPG test or OGTT completed on a different day if the clinical condition of the patient permits.
Getting the best treatment
Lifestyle modification including diet and exercise and new drugs are the mainstay approach to control Type 2 diabetes and associated issues such as hypertension, high triglycerides level, low HDL (good) cholesterol, etc. The goals on diabetes treatment are to eliminate symptoms and prevent, or at least slow, the development of complications.
When caught early, Type 2 diabetes can often be controlled with diet and exercise alone. Since eighty percent of patients are overweight, getting rid of a just a few pounds can have a tremendous beneficial effect in blood sugar levels, metabolic state, blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
Unlike Type 1 diabetics who must carefully monitor the balance of carbohydrates to other foods at every meal, patient with Type 2 can perform well just by cutting down calories. The best way to do this is to cut back on saturated fat and to boost consumption of grains, fruits and vegetables.
Exercise reduces the body's insulin needs by boosting the cell's sensitivity to insulin. To get started, a 20-minute walk each evening, taking the stairs instead of the elevator at work or when shopping is recommended.
When exercise and diet alone aren't enough to control the diabetes, it's time for drug therapy. There are now a variety of medications that can help with diabetes Type 2.
Caution:
Patients with diabetes should be careful in making sudden changes in lifestyle modification including diet, exercise and medications. The main goal is to avoid an unsafe and critical lowering of blood sugar (hypoglycemia) due to an excessive exercise session, fasting or high dose of medication. Therefore, work closely with your doctor to ensure a safe and good control of blood sugar.
Jose V Coba MD MPH
[http://www.theonlinereference.com</126>]
Misconception #1:
Diabetes is a disease that kids get, therefore if you didn't get it then, you don't need to be concern about it.
Misconception #2:
Diabetes is an old person's disease and middle-age people do not need to worry about it.
Misconception #3:
When older people get diabetes, it is mild, so you don't have to pay much attention.
Dilemma
There are several types of diabetes but for the sake of this article we will be talking about type 1 and type 2. Both kinds of presentation involve elevated blood sugar levels and abnormal fat and protein metabolism.
Type 1 diabetes accounts for only 5% to 10% of diabetic patients and occur most often by young adulthood (once called juvenile-onset diabetes).
Type 2 diabetes, previously called non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) or adult-onset diabetes, is responsible for a weeping 90% to 95% of all diagnosed cases in adults. While Type 2 usually appears after age 45, half of all people with the disease develop it before age 60.
Background:
After eating, the amount of carbohydrates (sugar) in your blood rises, even if you haven't actually eaten sugar. As a result, your pancreas secretes insulin, a hormone that escorts sugar into hungry cells that either burn it for energy or store it for later use. Insulin can facilitate the transport of sugar to any number of places, ranging from your liver and muscles to other bodily cells, including fat cells.
In Type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune reaction destroys the pancreatic beta cells, the only cells in the body capable of producing hormone insulin that regulates blood glucose (sugar). People with this type of diabetes needs insulin injection to survive, without insulin injections, death may occur in a matte of days.
Insulin resistance is a major hallmark of Diabetes Type 2; it's a disorder in which the cells do not use insulin properly leading to a gradual loss of the pancreas' ability to produce more insulin in response to a higher demand.
Type 2 diabetes is associated with many risk factors including, elderly, obesity, positive family history of diabetes, previous history of gestational diabetes, impaired glucose metabolism, physical inactivity and a race/ethnicity.
Because Type 2 diabetes may not need insulin shots, many people wrongly assume that the disease is not serious.
Because Type1 diabetes lack entirely of insulin the onset is usually abrupt with obvious symptoms such as extreme thirst, frequent urination, blurred vision or unexplained weight loss.
In Type 2, the symptoms takes longer to show up because the glucose levels rise slowly since the patients has some insulin in their systems. As result, half of people suffering from Type 2 diabetes don't know they have it until complications start showing up and consequently, they go untreated for a long time putting them at greater risk for more complications.
Testing Guidelines
The American Diabetes Association recommends that all Americans 45 yrs or older should be screened for diabetes at least once every three years. Testing should be considered at a younger age or be carried out more often in individuals with a BMI ≥25 and those with one or more of the other risk factors.
The fasting plasma glucose(FPG) test is the best screening test for diabetes because it is easier, faster to perform, more convenient and acceptable to patients, and less expensive. It also requires an overnight fast but the patient doesn't have to drink the sweet liquid or wait two hours like the old oral glucose-tolerance test (OGTT).
An FPG ≥126 mg/dl is an indication for retesting, which should be repeated on a different day to confirm a diagnosis. If the FPG is <126 mg/dl and there is a high suspicion for diabetes, an OGTT should be performed. A 2-h post load value in the OGTT ≥200 mg/dl is a positive test for diabetes and should be confirmed on an alternate day). Fasting is defined as no consumption of food or beverage other than water for at least 8 h before testing.
Non-diabetic individuals with an FPG ≥100 mg/dl but less than 126 mg/dl are considered to have IFG (impaired fasting glucose), and those with 2-h values in the OGTT ≥140 mg/dl but less than 200 mg/dl are defined as having IGT (impaired glucose tolerance).
Patients with IFG and/or IGT are now referred to as having "pre-diabetes," indicating the relatively high risk for development of diabetes in these patients. Normal glycemia is defined as plasma glucose levels less than 100 mg/dl in the FPG test and a 2-h post load value less than 140 mg/dl in the OGTT.
If necessary, plasma glucose testing may be performed on individuals who have taken food or drink shortly before testing. Such tests are referred to as casual plasma glucose or random measurements and are given without regard to time of last meal. A casual plasma glucose level more or equal to 200 mg/dl with symptoms of diabetes is considered diagnostic of diabetes. This measurement needs to be repeated and confirm with a second FPG test or OGTT completed on a different day if the clinical condition of the patient permits.
Getting the best treatment
Lifestyle modification including diet and exercise and new drugs are the mainstay approach to control Type 2 diabetes and associated issues such as hypertension, high triglycerides level, low HDL (good) cholesterol, etc. The goals on diabetes treatment are to eliminate symptoms and prevent, or at least slow, the development of complications.
When caught early, Type 2 diabetes can often be controlled with diet and exercise alone. Since eighty percent of patients are overweight, getting rid of a just a few pounds can have a tremendous beneficial effect in blood sugar levels, metabolic state, blood pressure and cholesterol levels.
Unlike Type 1 diabetics who must carefully monitor the balance of carbohydrates to other foods at every meal, patient with Type 2 can perform well just by cutting down calories. The best way to do this is to cut back on saturated fat and to boost consumption of grains, fruits and vegetables.
Exercise reduces the body's insulin needs by boosting the cell's sensitivity to insulin. To get started, a 20-minute walk each evening, taking the stairs instead of the elevator at work or when shopping is recommended.
When exercise and diet alone aren't enough to control the diabetes, it's time for drug therapy. There are now a variety of medications that can help with diabetes Type 2.
Caution:
Patients with diabetes should be careful in making sudden changes in lifestyle modification including diet, exercise and medications. The main goal is to avoid an unsafe and critical lowering of blood sugar (hypoglycemia) due to an excessive exercise session, fasting or high dose of medication. Therefore, work closely with your doctor to ensure a safe and good control of blood sugar.
Jose V Coba MD MPH
[http://www.theonlinereference.com</126>]
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