What are the Causes of Diabetics? Diabetic, Types, Symptoms
Last updated on April 5th, 2023 at 03:21 am
5 minutes read.
Diabetes had been a major health problem in so many parts of the world today. Many people have been diagnosed, while many are living with it unaware.
Diabetes is a health disorder characterized by high sugar (glucose) in the blood, either your body is not making enough insulin to regulate your blood sugar or your body is not responding efficiently to the insulin is producing.
Diabetes occurs in two types; type 1 and 2. Type 1 is an autoimmune disease that normally develops at an early stage (20 of age or above) in some individuals while type 2 is an impairment of body hormones due to certain lifestyles over time.
Blood glucose is your main source of energy and comes mainly from the food you eat. Insulin, a hormone made by the pancreas, helps glucose get into your cells to be used for energy.
Untreated high blood sugar from diabetes can damage your nerves, eyes, kidneys, and other organs, and leave you with devastating health.
You may be suffering from this disease simply because you don’t know the causes and how to reverse it. Click here to Find out five Natural ways to prevent or reverse diabetes issues permanently
It’s important you’re informed of all you need to know so that you won’t be deformed. That’s why I wrote this article.
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What is Diabetes?
Diabetes is a chronic, metabolic disease characterized by elevated levels of blood sugar (blood glucose), which can over time leads to serious damage to the heart, blood vessels, eyes, kidney, and nerves.
Types of Diabetes
There are two types of diabetes that affect the human body:
Types type 1 and type 2
Type 1 Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is commonly called “juvenile diabetes” because it tends to develop at a younger age, typically before a person turns 20 years old.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas.
The damage to the pancreatic cells leads to a reduced ability or complete inability to create insulin.
Some of the common causes that trigger this autoimmune response may include a virus, genetically modified organisms, heavy metals, or foods like wheat, cow’s milk, and soy.
The reason foods like wheat and cow’s milk have been linked to diabetes is that they contain the proteins gluten and A1 casein.
These proteins can cause leaky gut, which in turn causes systemic inflammation throughout the body and over time can lead to autoimmune disease.
Type 1 diabetes is rarely reversed, but with the right dietary changes major improvements in blood sugar levels can be seen and a person can often reduce his or her dependence on insulin and medications.
What’s Type 2 Diabetes?
Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a metabolic disorder characterized by persistent chronic hyperglycemia, an associated disease, resulting from impaired insulin secretion, insulin resistance, or a combination of both. (1, 2, 3)
In type 2 diabetes, your body doesn’t make enough insulin or doesn’t use the insulin you produce efficiently. Too much glucose then stays in your blood, and not enough reaches your cells.
Glucose which is gotten from the food you eat is the major energy of your body system. . Carbohydrates, proteins, and fat you consume as food, all ultimately break down into glucose.
The pancreas is the organ that has key roles in maintaining normal blood glucose levels by producing and releasing insulin and glucagon.
Insulin causes glucose to be deposited in the liver as glycogen; then, during the next few hours, when blood glucose concentration falls, the liver releases glucose back into the blood, decreasing fluctuations.
Glucagon triggers your liver to convert stored glucose (glycogen) into a usable form and then release it into your bloodstream. This process is called glycogenolysis.
Glucagon can also prevent your liver from taking in and storing glucose so that more glucose stays in your blood.
Glucagon is a natural hormone that works with the pancreas and insulin to regulate blood sugar. It prevents your blood sugar from dropping too low. (4, 5, 6, 7)
Common Causes of type 1 and type 2 Diabetes
What are the causes of diabetics?
There are thirteen known factors that have been linked to the causes of diabetes. They include:
1. Aging
Older adults are at high risk for the development of type 2 diabetes due to the combined effects of increasing insulin resistance and impaired pancreatic islet function with aging. (8)
Insulin secretion tends to decrease with age even after adjustments for differences in adiposity (overweight), fat distribution, and physical activity. (9)
A study carried out on older adults indicated that insulin sensitivity decreases with age. (10, 11)
Beta cells are cells that make insulin, a hormone that controls the level of glucose (a type of sugar) in the blood. Beta cells are found in the pancreas within clusters of cells known as islets. Your beta cell function declines with age.
In type 1 diabetes, the body’s immune system mistakenly destroys the beta cells.
A small study of pancreata from twenty non-diabetic organ donors aged 7 to 66 years old showed a decline in beta cell replication with age.
The decline in beta cell replication was directly associated with a decrease in expression of the pancreatic and duodenal (first part of the small intestine). (12, 13)
2. Overweight/Obesity
Being overweight is a risk factor for developing type 2 diabetes. While some who are obese are living with diabetes with either type 1 or type 2 diabetes unaware.
Obesity causes increased levels of fatty acids and inflammation, leading to insulin resistance, which in turn can lead to type 2 diabetes. (14)
Studies show that in obesity, insulin sensitivity, as well as the modulation of β-cell function, decreases.
Indicating that gaining weight in early life is associated with the development of type 1 diabetes. (15, 16,17)
3. Insufficient Energy consumption (not doing enough exercise)
Exercise training can favorably affect glycemic parameters, lipid profile, blood pressure, and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein.
Exercise improves blood glucose control in type 2 diabetes, reduces cardiovascular risk factors, and regulates body weight by reducing body fat percentage and enhancing lean mass.
Regular exercise may prevent or delay diabetes development. (18, 19, 20)
4. Alcohol
Heavy drinking, particularly in diabetics, also can cause the accumulation of certain acids in the blood that may result in severe health consequences.
Finally, alcohol consumption can worsen diabetes-related medical complications, such as disturbances in fat metabolism, nerve damage, and eye disease. (21)
Regular heavy drinking can reduce the body’s sensitivity to insulin, which can trigger type 2 diabetes. Diabetes is a common side effect of chronic pancreatitis, which may be caused by heavy drinking.
Alcoholic drinks often contain a lot of calories – for instance, one pint of lager is equivalent to a slice of pizza. (22, 23)
5. Smoking
This is how smoking can lead to diabetes;
Insulin helps blood sugar enter cells, but nicotine in the cigarette changes cells so they don’t respond to insulin, which increases blood sugar levels.
Chemicals in cigarettes harm cells in your body and cause inflammation. This also makes cells stop responding to insulin. (24, 26).
According to the 2014 Surgeon General’s Report, there are several ways in which smoking may increase a person’s risk for developing type 2 diabetes. (27, 28).
The chemicals in cigarettes cause harm to your body’s cells and can interfere with their normal function.
This can cause inflammation throughout the body, which may decrease the effectiveness of insulin.
Additionally, when chemicals from cigarette smoke meet oxygen in the body, this process can also cause cell damage, called oxidative stress.
Both oxidative stress and inflammation may be related to an increased risk of diabetes. Smokers are 30 to 40 percent more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than nonsmokers. (29)
6. Diet
Too much consumption of unhealthy fats and processed carbohydrates, such as flour, pasta, soft drinks, and other processed foods which are made of flour can lead to increase blood sugar.
Many studies have reported a positive association between a high intake of sugars and the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus
In a study, Ludwig investigated more than 500 ethnically diverse schoolchildren for 19 months. It was found that for each additional serving of carbonated drinks consumed, the frequency of obesity increased. (30, 31, 32)
In a diabetes study, conducted at San Louis Valley, a more than thousand subjects without a prior diagnosis of diabetes were prospectively investigated for 4 years.
In that study, the researchers found an association between fat intake, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and impaired glucose tolerance. (33, 34 )
Also, a high intake of red meat, sweets, and fried foods contributes to the increased risk of insulin resistance and diabetes. Certain chemicals in the food we consume are to be blamed for increased diabetic risk. (35)
7. Medication
Taking certain medications that disrupt insulin production such as oral diazoxide and octreotide/octapeptides injection) can increase your risk of developing diabetes.
Oral diazoxide inhibits pancreatic secretion of insulin, stimulates glucose release from the liver, and stimulates catecholamine release, which elevates blood glucose levels. Octreotide (Sandostatin) also inhibits insulin secretion
8. Pregnancy
Blood sugar that is not well controlled in a pregnant woman with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes could lead to problems for the woman and the baby.
Diabetes during pregnancy including type 1, type 2, or gestational diabetes can negatively affect the health of women and their babies.
For women with type 1 or type 2 diabetes, high blood sugar around the time of conception increases babies’ risk of birth defects, stillbirth, and preterm birth. (36, 37)
Hyperglycemia is common during pregnancy, involving multisystem adaptations. Pregnancy-induced metabolic changes increase insulin resistance.
Pregnancy-induced insulin resistance adds to preexisting insulin resistance. Preexisting pancreatic β-cell defect compromises the ability to enhance insulin secretion, leading to hyperglycemia. (38)
9. Genetics and family history
Gene-environment and gene-gene interactions and epigenetics are likely to contribute to the missing heritability of diabetes.
Epigenetic factors (DNA methylations and histone modifications) are especially important because they might mediate the effects of environmental exposures on the risk of type 2 diabetes.
However, more research is needed to determine the link between the genetic makeup of an individual and diabetes and may find advanced therapy that could avert the risk.
Having a parent, brother or sister have been diagnosed as diabetic could pose a risk of developing diabetes too. (39)
10. Hormonal imbalance
Having a hormonal condition (like hyperthyroidism, polycystic ovary syndrome, or Cushing’s syndrome).
11. Being exposed to toxins, viruses, or harmful chemicals
12. Chronic hyperglycemia (too much sugar in the blood)
Many Scientific studies have indicated that chronic hyperglycemia imposes damage (glucose toxicity) on a number of cell types and is strongly correlated with the myriad of diabetes mellitus-related complications.
Tissues most vulnerable to the effects of prolonged elevated plasma glucose levels include pancreatic β cells and vascular endothelial cells.
The ensuing β-cell dysfunction promotes decreased insulin synthesis and secretion, further perpetuating the associated hyperglycemia.
As for the vascular endothelium, chronic hyperglycemia is strongly correlated with many diabetes mellitus-related microvascular complications, including retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy. (40, 41)
13. High blood pressure
Having hypertension appears to increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, and having diabetes increases the risk of hypertension.
The combination of high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes can greatly increase your risk of having a heart attack or stroke.
Having type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure also increases your chances of developing other diabetes-related diseases, such as kidney disease and retinopathy
Combined evidence from cohort studies suggests that each 20 mm Hg (millimeter mercury) higher systolic blood pressure is associated with a 77 percent increased risk of type 2 diabetes. (42, 43, 44)
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Symptoms to know
Diabetes symptoms depend on how high your blood sugar is and how your body system responds to it.
Some individuals, especially if they have prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, may not have symptoms. In type 1 diabetes, symptoms tend to come on quickly and be more severe.
Signs and symptoms of type 1 and type 2 diabetes include:
- Increased thirst than usual.
- Frequent urination (peeing)
- Increased hunger
- Unintended weight loss
- Fatigue
- Presence of ketones in the urine (ketones are a byproduct of the breakdown of muscle and fat that happens when there’s not enough available insulin).
- Blurred vision
- Slow-healing sores
- Frequent infections
- Numbness or tingling in the hands or feet
- Areas of darkened skin, usually in the armpits and neck. 45
- Infertility in men. (Diabetic disease and experimentally induced diabetes or type 2 diabetes could have detrimental effects on male fertility, especially on sperm DNA integrity, and ingredient of seminal plasma). 46
Questions you may have in mind
What is the difference between Type I and type 2 diabetes?
The main difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes is that type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease (due to genetic makeup) that often shows up early in life, and type 2 is mainly caused by certain lifestyles and develops over time.
With type 1 diabetes, your immune system is attacking and destroying the insulin-producing cells in your pancreas. 25
Can type 1 lead to type 2 diabetes?
Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are distinct types that do not change from one another. However, a person may use insulin to treat either type.
Also, both are preventable and reversible by following a certain diet and avoiding the common causes that are avoidable.
Conclusion
Diabetes is a health disorder characterized by high sugar (glucose) in the blood, either your body is not making enough insulin to regulate your blood sugar or your body is not responding efficiently to the insulin is producing.
Both type 1 and type 2 can lead to devastating health conditions such as impairment of the eye site, kidney, skin, nerves, and certain organs in the body if left untreated.
Common causes of type 1 and type 2 diabetes include obesity, diet, lack of exercise, hyperglycemia, alcohol, smoking, certain mediation, age, hypertension, pregnancy, genetic and family history.
Signs and symptoms include increased thirst than usual, frequent peeing, increased hunger, unintended weight loss, fatigue, Presence of ketones in the urine blurred vision slow-healing sores, frequent infections, numbness or tingling in the hands or feet, and infertility in men.
It’s as good you get detailed knowledge of diabetes today so you can protect yourself and your loved ones from developing diabetes.
All you have to do now is to find out how you can prevent or reverse already existing diabetics in my previous article
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