Diabetes is a clinical syndrome having high blood sugar levels along with an extra amount of glucose present in urine. Having high blood glucose levels or high blood sugar levels is known as Hyperglycemia. There are many causes of Hyperglycemia, but main causes are type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Diabetes can be caused due to lack of insulin or insulin resistance. Medically, Diabetes is referred as Diabetes Mellitus. Mainly diabetes is a metabolic disorder.
As per WHO (World Health Organization, in 1980, the number of people with diabetes was 108 million that has raised to 422 million in 2014. (Source: WHO)
Diabetes is a chronic disease (long standing disease). The pancreas is one of the body organs that produces Insulin. Insulin is one type of hormone that regulates blood sugar levels in the body. Diabetes is mainly due to when there is insulin deficiency, means pancreas fails to produce enough insulin required for a body to maintain blood sugar levels or when the pancreas produces enough insulin but body fails to use that insulin produced by the pancreas. Lack of insulin affects the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats that can lead to water and electrolyte imbalance. Long-standing diabetes can cause structural as well as functional changes in body organs such as eyes, kidney or nervous system of the body.
Worldwide types 2 diabetes patients are more common rather than type 1 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is mainly associated with obesity, unhealthy diet, lazy lifestyle and increasing urban craze.
Normal Blood Sugar Levels
Searching whether you are having normal blood sugar levels or having high blood sugar levels or low blood sugar levels? and for that, you must know the normal blood sugar levels.
Normal blood sugar levels for healthy individuals are:
Fasting blood glucose level ranges from 72 to 108 mg/dL
Two hours after eating blood glucose level should be up to 140 mg/dL
Random blood glucose level should be below 200 mg/dL
Normal blood sugar levels for diabetic patients are:
Before having meal, blood glucose level should be from 72 to 126 mg/dL for both type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes
After having meal, blood glucose level should be below 162 mg/dL for type 1 diabetes and below 154 mg/dL for type 2 diabetes
Random blood glucose level should be 200 mg/dL or more
Types of Diabetes or Diabetes Mellitus
Diabetes or Diabetes Mellitus are mainly having two types: Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 Diabetes.
Type 1 Diabetes
Previously, Type 1 diabetes was known as Insulin Depended Diabetes Mellitus (IDDM). Type 1 diabetes is mainly due to insufficient production of Insulin required for a body to maintain blood glucose level by the pancreas. This type of diabetes requires insulin from outside.
What causes Type 1 Diabetes?
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. Of this type, there is a destruction of beta cells in the pancreatic islets that are responsible for the production of insulin. This insulin deficiency causes high blood sugar levels in the body which end up with to diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes may be associated with other diseases that are autoimmune too, such as Thyroid disease, Addison’s disease, Coeliac disease or Vitiligo.
Some other causes for type 1 diabetes are:
Some hormones released due to stress may lead to type 1 diabetes.
Diet and type 1 diabetes: Smoked and meat containing nitrosamines and coffee are toxins causing diabetes.
Some parents are found not giving breastfeeding to their baby in early infancy. There is bad news for them because if they are giving cow’s milk to their babies. Because cow’s milk has Bovine serum albumin (BSA) in it may cause type 1 diabetes.