What Are The Causes Of Diabetes

Diabetes In Dogs: Symptoms, Causes, & Treatment

Diabetes is a chronic disease that can affect dogs and cats and other animals (including apes, pigs, and horses) as well as humans. Although diabetes can’t be cured, it can be managed very successfully. Diabetes mellitus, or “sugar diabetes,” is the type of diabetes seen most often in dogs. It is a metabolism disorder. Metabolism refers to how the body converts food to energy. To understand what diabetes is, it helps to understand some of this process. The conversion of food nutrients into energy to power the body’s cells involves an ongoing interplay of two things: • Glucose: essential fuel for the body’s cells. When food is digested, the body breaks down some of the nutrients into glucose, a type of sugar that is a vital source of energy for certain body cells and organs. The glucose is absorbed from the intestines into the blood, which then transports the glucose throughout the body. • Insulin: in charge of fuel delivery. Meanwhile, an important organ next to the stomach called the pancreas releases the hormone insulin into the body. Insulin acts as a “gatekeeper” that tells cells to grab glucose and other nutrients out of the bloodstream and use them as fuel. What is diabetes? With diabetes, the glucose-insulin connection isn’t working as it should. Diabetes occurs in dogs in two forms: • Insulin-deficiency diabetes—This is when the dog’s body isn’t producing enough insulin. This happens when the pancreas is damaged or otherwise not functioning properly. Dogs with this type of diabetes need daily shots to replace the missing insulin. This is the most common type of diabetes in dogs. • Insulin-resistance diabetes—This is when the pancreas is producing some insulin, but the dog’s body isn’t utilizing the insulin as it should. The ce Continue reading >>

Does Sugar Cause Diabetes?

The recent film What the Health raised the question as to whether sugar or other carbohydrates cause diabetes. The notion is understandable. Blood sugar levels are high in diabetes, so a common idea has held that eating sugar somehow triggers the disease process. However, the major diabetes organizations take a different view. The American Diabetes Association1 and Diabetes UK2 have labelled this notion a “myth,” as has the Joslin Diabetes Center,3 which wrote, “Diabetes is not caused by eating too much sugar.” These and other organizations have worked to educate people about the causes of diabetes and the role that foods play in the disease process. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. Type 2 diabetes—the most common form of the disease—is caused by insulin resistance and pancreatic failure. Here is what you need to know: Sugar Is the Body’s Fuel The human body runs on glucose, a simple sugar. Just as gasoline powers your car, glucose powers your muscles, your brain, and the rest of your body. Glucose comes from fruit and from starchy foods, such as grains, beans, and potatoes, and your body can also produce it when needed. Without it you would die. Diabetes means having higher-than-normal blood glucose values. It comes in three common forms: Type 1 diabetes is caused by the destruction of the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas, usually through an autoimmune process. The triggers for this process are under investigation and may include dairy proteins, viruses, or other factors. Type 2 diabetes typically starts with insulin resistance. That is, the cells of the body resist insulin’s efforts to escort glucose into the cells. What causes insulin resistance? It appears to be caused by an accumulation of microscopic fat particles within muscle and Continue reading >>

What Is Diabetes?

Diabetes can strike anyone, from any walk of life. And it does – in numbers that are dramatically increasing. In the last decade, the cases of people living with diabetes jumped almost 50 percent – to more than 30 million Americans. Worldwide, it afflicts more than 422 million people. And the World Health Organization estimates that by 2030, that number of people living with diabetes will more than double. Today, diabetes takes more lives than AIDS and breast cancer combined -- claiming the life of 1 American every 3 minutes. It is a leading cause of blindness, kidney failure, amputations, heart failure and stroke. Living with diabetes places an enormous emotional, physical and financial burden on the entire family. Annually, diabetes costs the American public more than $245 billion. Just what is diabetes? To answer that, you first need to understand the role of insulin in your body. When you eat, your body turns food into sugars, or glucose. At that point, your pancreas is supposed to release insulin. Insulin serves as a “key” to open your cells, to allow the glucose to enter -- and allow you to use the glucose for energy. But with diabetes, this system does not work. Several major things can go wrong – causing the onset of diabetes. Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are the most common forms of the disease, but there are also other kinds, such as gestational diabetes, which occurs during pregnancy, as well as other forms. What is type 1 diabetes? What is type 2 diabetes? Do you want to learn more about a cure for diabetes? We're developing a DRI BioHub mini organ to restore natural insulin production in those living with diabetes. Watch the BioHub video>> Keep up with the latest updates on the DRI BioHub. Be a DRInsider today. It's free and easy to sign up. Join no Continue reading >>

Symptoms & Causes Of Diabetes

What are the symptoms of diabetes? Symptoms of diabetes include increased thirst and urination increased hunger fatigue blurred vision numbness or tingling in the feet or hands sores that do not heal unexplained weight loss Symptoms of type 1 diabetes can start quickly, in a matter of weeks. Symptoms of type 2 diabetes often develop slowly—over the course of several years—and can be so mild that you might not even notice them. Many people with type 2 diabetes have no symptoms. Some people do not find out they have the disease until they have diabetes-related health problems, such as blurred vision or heart trouble. What causes type 1 diabetes? Type 1 diabetes occurs when your immune system, the body’s system for fighting infection, attacks and destroys the insulin-producing beta cells of the pancreas. Scientists think type 1 diabetes is caused by genes and environmental factors, such as viruses, that might trigger the disease. Studies such as TrialNet are working to pinpoint causes of type 1 diabetes and possible ways to prevent or slow the disease. What causes type 2 diabetes? Type 2 diabetes—the most common form of diabetes—is caused by several factors, including lifestyle factors and genes. Overweight, obesity, and physical inactivity You are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes if you are not physically active and are overweight or obese. Extra weight sometimes causes insulin resistance and is common in people with type 2 diabetes. The location of body fat also makes a difference. Extra belly fat is linked to insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, and heart and blood vessel disease. To see if your weight puts you at risk for type 2 diabetes, check out these Body Mass Index (BMI) charts. Insulin resistance Type 2 diabetes usually begins with insulin resista Continue reading >>

Canine Diabetes And Its Causes

Diabetes mellitus occurs when the pancreas doesn’t produce enough insulin. Insulin is required for the body to efficiently use sugars, fats and proteins. Diabetes most commonly occurs in middle age to older dogs and cats, but occasionally occurs in young animals. Certain conditions predispose a dog to developing diabetes. According to the Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine, “Animals that are overweight or those with inflammation of the pancreas are predisposed to developing diabetes. Some drugs can interfere with insulin, leading to diabetes. Glucocorticoids, which are cortisone-type drugs, and hormones used for heat control are drugs that are most likely to cause diabetes. These are commonly used drugs and only a small percentage of animals receiving these drugs develop diabetes after long term use.” The conventional treatment of choice for diabetes is insulin. Most dogs are also prescribed a veterinary formula processed food. “Your veterinarian will recommend a specific diet and feeding regimen that will enhance the effectiveness of insulin. If your pet is overweight, s(he) will be placed on a weight-reducing diet. As the pet loses weight, less insulin will be needed. Only feed the recommended diet..NO table scraps or treats that are not part of the recommended diet.” These veterinary formulas for diabetes are low in protein and high in carbohydrates. Here is the ingredient list for one of the more popular veterinary prescription foods for diabetes: Whole Grain Corn, Powdered Cellulose, Chicken by-product Meal, Corn Gluten Meal, Chicken Liver Flavor, Soybean Mill Run, Soybean Oil, Dried Beet Pulp, Lactic Acid, Soybean Meal, Caramel Color, Potassium Chloride, Calcium Sulfate, Flaxseed, L-Lysine, Vitamin E Supplement, Choline Chloride, Continue reading >>

Diabetes (mellitus, Type 1 And Type 2) (cont.)

A A A Type 1 diabetes (T1D): The body stops producing insulin or produces too little insulin to regulate blood glucose level. Type 1 diabetes affects about 10% of all people with diabetes in the United States. Type 1 diabetes is typically diagnosed during childhood or adolescence. It used to be referred to as juvenile-onset diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. Insulin deficiency can occur at any age due to destruction of the pancreas by alcohol, disease, or removal by surgery. Type 1 diabetes also results from progressive failure of the pancreatic beta cells, the only cell type that produces significant amounts of insulin. People with type 1 diabetes require daily insulin treatment to sustain life. Type 2 diabetes (T2D): Although the pancreas still secretes insulin, the body of someone with type 2 diabetes is partially or completely incapable of responding to insulin. This is often referred to as insulin resistance. The pancreas tries to overcome this resistance by secreting more and more insulin. People with insulin resistance develop type 2 diabetes when they fail to secrete enough insulin to cope with their body's demands. At least 90% of adult individuals with diabetes have type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes is typically diagnosed during adulthood, usually after age 45 years. It was once called adult-onset diabetes mellitus, or non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. These names are no longer used because type 2 diabetes does occur in young people, and some people with type 2 diabetes require insulin therapy. Type 2 diabetes is usually controlled with diet, weight loss, exercise, and/or oral medications. However, more than half of all people with type 2 diabetes require insulin to control their blood sugar levels at some point during the course of their i Continue reading >>

What Causes Type 1 Diabetes?

T1D has genetic, environmental and immune components Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disease in which a person’s pancreas stops producing insulin, a hormone that controls blood-sugar levels. T1D develops when the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin, called beta cells. Research is underway to find out what causes T1D—and how to stop it—but we already know that there are multiple components in play. Genes and family history Certain genes increase a person’s risk of developing T1D, as does family history. If you have a relative with T1D, your risk of developing it is 1 in 20, which is 15 times greater than the general population. The genetic coding that puts you at higher risk for T1D is in a large part related to your body’s immune response. Environmental triggers Although genes are important in determining risk, they aren’t the whole story. Environmental factors, such as viruses, may trigger T1D in people who are genetically at risk. Scientists believe that certain viruses may target beta cells, and as the immune response ramps up to fight those viruses, it goes awry and attacks uninfected beta cells by mistake. Immune response Once T1D is triggered, biochemical signs of the immune attack on beta cells can be detected. These signs, called autoantibodies, appear well before T1D symptoms do. As the immune attack continues and more beta cells are destroyed, insulin production decreases and blood-sugar levels become abnormal. Eventually, so many beta cells are destroyed, and insulin production drops so low, that symptoms of T1D appear. What doesn’t cause T1D? Onset of T1D has nothing to do with diet or lifestyle. Today, there is nothing you can do to prevent it or get rid of it. But JDRF is working to Continue reading >>

What Causes Autoimmune Diabetes?

Autoimmune diabetes is influenced by genetics. What starts the autoimmune destruction is unknown, but it may be due to environmental factors. You may want to learn more about how type 1a diabetes develops. We know type 1a diabetes is caused by an autoimmune process in the body that mistakenly destroys the insulin-producing cells, or beta cells and occurs in genetically predisposed individuals. What starts the autoimmune destruction is unknown, but it may be due to environmental factors. In this section, you can learn more about: What is the Immune system? An overview of the different cells and organs in the immune system and how the immune system works Autoimmunity and diabetes: Current ideas about how the immune systems destroys insulin producing cells Continue reading >>

Diabetes

The Facts Diabetes is a condition where people don't produce enough insulin to meet their body's needs and/or their cells don't respond properly to insulin. Insulin is important because it moves glucose, a simple sugar, into the body's cells from the blood. It also has a number of other effects on metabolism. The food that people eat provides the body with glucose, which is used by the cells as a source of energy. If insulin isn't available or doesn't work correctly to move glucose from the blood into cells, glucose will stay in the blood. High blood glucose levels are toxic, and cells that don't get glucose are lacking the fuel they need. There are two main kinds of diabetes: type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. More than 90% of all people with diabetes have type 2. A 2015 Canadian Diabetes Association (CDA) report estimated that about 3.4 million Canadians have diabetes. Only about two-thirds of people with type 2 diabetes are aware of it and are receiving treatment because, for many people, early symptoms are not noticeable without testing. Type 1 diabetes occurs when the pancreas cannot make insulin. Everyone with type 1 diabetes requires insulin injections. Type 2 diabetes occurs when the pancreas does not make enough insulin or the body does not use insulin properly. It usually occurs in adults, although in some cases children may be affected. People with type 2 diabetes usually have a family history of this condition and are most often overweight. People with type 2 diabetes may eventually need insulin injections. This condition occurs most commonly in people of First Nations descent, Hispanics, and North Americans of African descent. Another less common form is gestational diabetes, a temporary condition that occurs during pregnancy. According to the CDA, depend Continue reading >>

Diabetes Mellitus: An Overview

Diabetes mellitus is a disease that prevents your body from properly using the energy from the food you eat. Diabetes occurs in one of the following situations: The pancreas (an organ behind your stomach) produces little insulin or no insulin at all. (Insulin is a naturally occurring hormone, produced by the beta cells of the pancreas, which helps the body use sugar for energy.) -Or- The pancreas makes insulin, but the insulin made does not work as it should. This condition is called insulin resistance. To better understand diabetes, it helps to know more about how the body uses food for energy (a process called metabolism). Your body is made up of millions of cells. To make energy, the cells need food in a very simple form. When you eat or drink, much of your food is broken down into a simple sugar called glucose. Glucose provides the energy your body needs for daily activities. The blood vessels and blood are the highways that transport sugar from where it is either taken in (the stomach) or manufactured (in the liver) to the cells where it is used (muscles) or where it is stored (fat). Sugar cannot go into the cells by itself. The pancreas releases insulin into the blood, which serves as the helper, or the "key," that lets sugar into the cells for use as energy. When sugar leaves the bloodstream and enters the cells, the blood sugar level is lowered. Without insulin, or the "key," sugar cannot get into the body's cells for use as energy. This causes sugar to rise. Too much sugar in the blood is called "hyperglycemia" (high blood sugar) or diabetes. What are the types of diabetes? There are two main types of diabetes: Type 1 and Type 2: Type 1 diabetes occurs because the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas (beta cells) are damaged. In Type 1 diabetes, the pancreas Continue reading >>

Causes Of Diabetes

Tweet Diabetes causes vary depending on your genetic makeup, family history, ethnicity, health and environmental factors. There is no common diabetes cause that fits every type of diabetes. The reason there is no defined diabetes cause is because the causes of diabetes vary depending on the individual and the type. For instance; the causes of type 1 diabetes vary considerably from the causes of gestational diabetes. Similarly, the causes of type 2 diabetes are distinct from the causes of type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes causes Type 1 diabetes is caused by the immune system destroying the cells in the pancreas that make insulin. This causes diabetes by leaving the body without enough insulin to function normally. This is called an autoimmune reaction, or autoimmune cause, because the body is attacking itself. There is no specific diabetes causes, but the following triggers may be involved: Viral or bacterial infection Chemical toxins within food Unidentified component causing autoimmune reaction Underlying genetic disposition may also be a type 1 diabetes cause. Type 2 diabetes causes Type 2 diabetes causes are usually multifactorial - more than one diabetes cause is involved. Often, the most overwhelming factor is a family history of type 2 diabetes. This is the most likely type 2 diabetes cause. There are a variety of risk factors for type 2 diabetes, any or all of which increase the chances of developing the condition. These include: Living a sedentary lifestyle Increasing age Bad diet Other type 2 diabetes causes such as pregnancy or illness can be type 2 diabetes risk factors. Gestational diabetes causes The causes of diabetes in pregnancy also known as gestational diabetes remain unknown. However, there are a number of risk factors that increase the chances of deve Continue reading >>

What Causes A Diabetic Emergency?

A diabetic emergency is caused by an imbalance between sugar and insulin in the body. It can happen when there is: Too much sugar in the blood (hyperglycemia): Among other causes, the person may not have taken enough insulin or the person is reacting adversely to a large meal or a meal that is high in carbohydrates. Too little sugar in the blood (hypoglycemia): The person may have taken too much insulin, eaten too little food, or overexerted him- or herself. Extremely low blood sugar levels can quickly become life threatening. Continue reading >>

The Truth About ‘what The Health’ Claim “sugar Doesn’t Cause Diabetes”

Earlier this year, pro-vegan documentary What The Health was released on Netflix. The film, which explores the credibility of large health organisations’ advice on nutrition, has received a lot of attention from both supporters and critics alike. Many people have attributed their change to a plant-based diet to the documentary including singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. However, one claim made in the film has been picked up by critics in an attempt to discredit the documentary as a whole: that sugar does not directly cause type 2 diabetes. For years now we have associated diabetes with an excess of sugar in a person’s diet. Diabetes is indeed the body’s inability to manage glucose levels in the blood but does this mean that sugar causes type 2 diabetes? Diabetes is a condition where a person’s pancreas doesn’t produce enough insulin (type 1 diabetes), or if it does the body can’t use insulin in the way it is supposed to (type 2 diabetes). Insulin is what allows glucose to pass from our blood into our muscle cells and therefore allows the body to use glucose as energy. When glucose can’t access the muscle cells, blood sugar levels rise. In type 2 diabetes, insulin is present but doesn’t work properly, this is called insulin resistance. This occurs when there is a build up of fat in muscle cells, this then stops your body’s signalling process that tells insulin it needs to allow glucose into the muscle cells. There are studies that back this up. Nearly a century ago the blood sugar levels of two groups of volunteers were monitored after they ate. One group ate meals high in fat, the other diets rich in carbohydrates. The group who were eating a fat rich diet experienced much larger spikes in their blood sugar after eating than the group who were fed carbohydrates Continue reading >>

What Causes Type 2 Diabetes?

Diabetes means having too much sugar (glucose) in your blood. In Type 2 diabetes, sugars go up because the body’s cells aren’t using the hormone called insulin effectively. What causes this “insulin resistance?” The answers may surprise you. Mainstream medicine and media have a standard explanation for Type 2. You get it if you’re fat and lazy. As WebMD puts it, “While not everyone with Type 2 diabetes is overweight, obesity and lack of physical activity are two of the most common causes of this form of diabetes.” However, Type 2 diabetes is not primarily a disease of behavior. As I showed in my book Diabetes: Sugar-Coated Crisis, it is an environmental illness. Here are ten causes for Type 2: • Refined foods. Type 2 diabetes was unknown until the rise of agriculture. Hunters and gatherers don’t get it, but people who eat a lot of grains can. Sugars or low-fiber refined grains like white bread get glucose into our systems very fast. The lower intestine isn’t involved in digesting these refined foods, so it doesn’t produce some of the incretin hormones needed for proper insulin function. Eating refined starches and sugars occasionally doesn’t cause insulin resistance, but too much of them can. • Genetics. Type 2 diabetes has a strong genetic component: If one identical twin has Type 2 diabetes, the other twin has a 70–90% chance of developing it. If one parent has Type 2 diabetes, his or her children have about a 40% chance of developing it in adulthood. If both parents have it, their children have up to a 70% chance of getting it. But are these associations genetic? Or is it that families share the same risk factors such as poverty, bad food, a history of trauma, or physical inactivity? Or is it something else, such as the following? • Inte Continue reading >>

Diabetes Symptoms, (type 1 And Type 2)

Diabetes type 1 and type 2 definition and facts Diabetes is a chronic condition associated with abnormally high levels of sugar (glucose) in the blood. Insulin produced by the pancreas lowers blood glucose. Absence or insufficient production of insulin, or an inability of the body to properly use insulin causes diabetes. The two types of diabetes are referred to as type 1 and type 2. Former names for these conditions were insulin-dependent and non-insulin-dependent diabetes, or juvenile onset and adult onset diabetes. Symptoms of type 1 and type 2 diabetes include increased urine output, excessive thirst, weight loss, hunger, fatigue, skin problems slow healing wounds, yeast infections, and tingling or numbness in the feet or toes. Some of the risk factors for getting diabetes include being overweight or obese, leading a sedentary lifestyle, a family history of diabetes, hypertension (high blood pressure), and low levels of the "good" cholesterol (HDL) and elevated levels of triglycerides in the blood. If you think you may have prediabetes or diabetes contact a health-care professional. Diabetes mellitus is a group of metabolic diseases characterized by high blood sugar (glucose) levels that result from defects in insulin secretion, or its action, or both. Diabetes mellitus, commonly referred to as diabetes (as it will be in this article) was first identified as a disease associated with "sweet urine," and excessive muscle loss in the ancient world. Elevated levels of blood glucose (hyperglycemia) lead to spillage of glucose into the urine, hence the term sweet urine. Normally, blood glucose levels are tightly controlled by insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas. Insulin lowers the blood glucose level. When the blood glucose elevates (for example, after eating food Continue reading >>