Diabetes is a chronic lifelong
condition that affects your body's ability to use the energy found in
food.
Physiology:-
When you eat food containing
carbohydrates it is broken down in the stomach and digestive system
into glucose which is a type of sugar. We need glucose from food
because it gives us energy. Carbohydrate containing food like starchy
foods, sugary foods, milk and some dairy products and fruits, this
glucose then moves into the blood stream and the body detects that
the blood glucose level is rising. In response to that pancreas which
is a little gland just underneath the stomach starts releasing a
hormone called insulin and this insulin helps our body get energy
from the food we eat. The blood stream then takes the glucose and the
insulin to every cell in our body that needs it.
There are two main types of diabetes,
type1 and type2
Type1 diabetes:-
Type1 diabetes is also called insulin
dependent diabetes. In type1 diabetes the body isn't making any
insulin at all this is because of an autoimmune response where by the
body has destroyed the insulin producing cells in the pancreas.
Type1 diabetes affects about 15% of all
cases and is most often found in under 40s. It is the most common
type found in childhood. In type1 diabetes the carbohydrate
containing food is broken down into glucose as normal. That glucose
then moves into the blood stream. Normally the body would produce
insulin to let that glucose into the cells. But in type1 diabetes
there is no insulin being produced so the glucose compress into the
body cells at all. So the level of glucose in the blood rises and
rises. The body tries to lower the level of glucose tries to get rid
of the glucose through the kidneys. That's why people have
undiagnosed type1 diabetes tends to get to pass a lots of urine. As
the kidneys fill to the glucose out of the blood they also take lots
of water with it so the person with diabetes will get very thirsty.
The urine contains lots of glucose and that creates an environment
where it is quite easy for bacteria to thrive so it is also common to
get thrush or genital itching. In the same way the blood contains
high level of glucose as well so that more bacteria then tend to
breed in fresh wounds and then might be slow to heal. Glucose can
also build up in the lens or front of the eye causing the liquid in
the lens to become cloudy. Some people with undiagnosed type1
diabetes may have blurred vision because the glucose can't get into
the cells to be used for energy. Somebody with undiagnosed type1
diabetes can fell very tired, lethargic and unable to get normal
values. But the body still needs energy stores in order to work
properly so what it does it starts to break down its fat stores and
that can lead to weight loss.
Main symptoms of type1 diabetes are
Thirst, frequent urination, thrush or
genital itching, slow healing, blurred vision, tiredness and weight
loss.
Type2 diabetes:-
Type2 diabetes accounts for about 85%of
all cases and is most common in over 40s. Type2 diabetes is a little
more complex because. That can be due to being over weight because of
build up of fat can stop insulin doing its job properly but it can
also happen in people with healthy weight. In type2 diabetes the
carbohydrate containing food is broken down into glucose in stomach
and digestive system is normal. That glucose then moves into the
blood stream, the pancreas stops to produce insulin which moves with
the glucose through the blood stream to all the body cells which need
glucose for energy. However the glucose converted get into the cells
because the locks to the cell door have become filled up with fat
deposits that means that the insulin can't enter the cell doors
properly so the level of glucose in the blood continues to rise. In
response to this the pancreas produces even more insulin so the blood
glucose levels continue to rise and the insulin level continue to
rise. This is further complicated by the cells to a desper of energy
sending an emergency signals to the liver to release stored glucose.
The blood glucose level goes up and up and the pancreas produces more
and more insulin and till it can't cope any more and eventually it
rise out.
Symptoms of type2 diabetes are
Thirst, frequent urination, thrush and
genital itching, slow healing of wounds, blurred vision, tiredness
and weight loss in some people. The symptoms of type2 diabetes come
along very slowly and people don't have any symptoms at all. So for
that reason people can live with type2 diabetes for upto 10yrs. Type2
diabetes can be treated by a number of different ways initially it
may be sufficient to make changes to the food you are eating,
undertake extra physical activity or lose any weight that might be
appropriate. Type2 diabetes is a progressive condition and most
people need some form of medication to treat it.
Risk factors for type2 diabetes:
Gestational diabetes:-
It is a temporary type of diabetes and
is one of the most common problem for pregnant women. Glucose
intolerance is an early stage of the condition.
Physiology:-
During pregnancy an organ called the
placenta develops in the uterus. The placenta connects the mother and
baby and make sure that the baby had enough food and water. The
placenta also makes several hormones, some of these hormones make it
harder for insulin to do its job controlling blood sugar. Insulin
opens your cells so that glucose can get in. During pregnancy your
body has to make three times its normal amount of insulin.
Gestational diabetes develops when the organ that makes insulin,
pancreas can't make enough insulin for pregnancy. Without enough
insulin your blood sugar can slip the blood and be changed to energy.
This causes extra sugar to build up in the blood. But if left
untreated, gestational diabetes can cause health issues for you and
your baby.
Complications of diabetes:-
People with diabetes have a risk of
developing serious health problems. Consistently high blood glucose
levels can lead to serious diseases affecting the heart and blood
vessels. Diabetes is a leading cause of cardiovascular disease,
blindness, kidney failure. Maintaining blood glucose levels, blood
pressure and cholesterol can delay or prevent complications of
diabetes.
Chronic complications of diabetes:
blindness, kidney disease, nerve damage, amputation, cardiovascular
diseases like stroke, heart attack, loss of circulation in arms and
legs.
In modern medicine system the insulin
is injected in the body to fulfill its deficiency. But it is just
like cutting off the branches of the tree and leaving the root as
usual. Insulin is only the supplementary to deficiency but not a
solution. Solution lies in the correction of cause. In homeopathy we
have two kinds of solutions to diabetic one is prevention and the
other is cure.
Homeopathic constitutional treatment helps in the
prevention of diabetes. This corrects the genetic tendency to develop
diabetes. Even various complications of diabetes such as diabetic
foot, diabetic cataract etc are successfully prevented by homeopathic
treatment. For cure homeopathy adopts constitutional treatment. Also
the patient need not take medicine lifelong. Gradually medicine doses
are reduced and finally stopped. So some of the diet changes,
exercise and homeopathic treatment will cure you from this killing
disease.