People With Type II Diabetes example essay topic

Non - Insulin - dependent diabetes mellitus is the name given to a disturbed chemical balance in the body, which can affect a number of different organs. The word diabetes comes from a Greek expression meaning, "siphon". (Nova) It refers to the increased urination and thirst that occurs in newly diagnosed cases. These symptoms are due to the high sugar (glucose) content in the urine. The sugar drags water out with it, the body gets dry and you feel thirsty.

All this follows an excessive build-up of glucose in the blood, because there is not enough insulin in your body to deal with it. Cases of diabetes have been discovered dating back as far as 1550 BC. in Egypt, where archeologists have studied scrolls named E bers Papyrus that describe symptoms of diabetes. (Nova) Non - insulin - dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) is also known as maturity onset diabetes. (Colliers) This name can be misleading even though it increases with age NIDDM is also found in teenagers and young adults.

Non - Insulin dependent diabetes mellitus is also commonly known as type II diabetes. In the Early stages of diabetes, there may be no symptoms at all. As glucose levels rise higher the following may occur. The person may have blurred vision.

A person may have a severe or chronic infection, because the high glucose levels affect the blood's defense system against infections. A person may have to urinate more frequently. This causes the person to feel thirsty. Excessive urination also results in the loss of essential chemicals, producing cramps, tiredness, weakness, and weight loss. (Medical Science Bulletin. statistics) Genetics appears to play a part in how type II diabetes develops.

Type II appears to "run" in families and it is most likely due to the inheritance of certain genes. If a person with type II diabetes has an identical twin, there is a 60 to 75 percent chance that the person will develop diabetes. (Research Activities) More evidence of the gene play comes from study on minorities. Compared to whites, African Americans, Asian Americans, Hispanic Americans (except Cuban Americans), and Native Americans all get type II diabetes more often. Native Americans have the highest rate f type II diabetes in the world. (Research Activities) Researchers have not yet isolated a single "type II diabetes" gene, but they are finding errors in several that may contribute to type II diabetes.

For example, researchers have identified a protein called PC-1 that shuts down the insulin receptor, which creates insulin resistance. (Encyclopedia Americana) This protein is dominant in most people with type II diabetes, compared with people without diabetes. For some reason to much of the protein is made in some people, and the insulin receptor cannot do its job properly, this can lead to insulin resistance. Researchers also believe that genes that lead to obesity may play a role in diabetes. Scientists have identified a gene they called the obese gene.

The obese gene appears to regulate body weight by making proteins that affect the center in the brain that tells you whether you are full or hungry. When the obese gene is mutated, the mice studied became obese and developed type II diabetes. (Nova) The most important environmental factor of type II diabetes appears to be obesity. Obesity is defied as weighing more than 20 percent of your desirable body weight. Genetics may play a role in obesity and therefore may trigger type II diabetes. In some way having to much body fat promotes resistance to insulin.

This is why for many years type II diabetes has been treated with diet and exercise. Losing weight and increasing the amount of fat helps the body use insulin better. People with central body obesity, which means carrying excess fat above the hips, have a higher risk of developing type II diabetes than those with excess fat on the hips and thighs. Central body obesity is more common in African Americans. Than in whites. This may be one reason why type II diabetes is also more common in African Americans than in Whites.

Type II diabetes may occur at any age, but age also seems to play a part. Half of all new cases of type II diabetes occur in people over the age of 55. (Encyclopedia Britannica) Older people tend to gain weight as they age. Many researchers think that one reason more older people develop diabetes is because more older people are overweight. There are several complications related to type II diabetes. One possible complication is cardiovascular disease, which causes more than half of the deaths in older people with diabetes.

People with diabetes are 2 to 4 times likely to get heart disease. (Medical Statistics) They are 5 times as likely to have a stroke that people without diabetes. Retinopathy (eye disease) is a second complication of people with diabetes. People with diabetes are 4 times more likely to become blind than people without diabetes.

Eighty percent of all non - insulin using diabetes show some signs of retinopathy. Nephropathy (nerve disease) is another complication of diabetes. Diabetic neuropathy often comes and goes or is severe for only a short period of time. Neuropathy is more likely to affect people who have had diabetes for a long time or whose glucose control is poor.

(Encyclopedia Britannica) Lastly, infections can cause complications. Having too much glucose in your blood can foul up many of the functions of blood, including the immune system. Doctors can treat the symptoms of type II diabetes by helping a patient plan a balance of diet and exercise. The doctor may also recommend oral diabetes medication.

(Encyclopedia Encarta 98') For people with a milder form of type II diabetes, insulin is almost never used, but 30 to 40 percent of people with type II diabetes do use insulin. There is no cure for this disorder and there is also no gene therapy at this time. Although your physician may suspect that you have diabetes because of your symptoms, the only way to tell is through blood test. Blood test can be used to diagnose both type I and type II diabetes.

(Colliers Encyclopedia) There are different types of blood test that can help diagnose diabetes. The random plasma glucose test is the simplest test used to diagnose diabetes. This test measures the amount of glucose in the blood at any given time and is done without fasting. If the amount of glucose, or sugar, in your blood is 200 mg or higher, you have diabetes.

For the fasting plasma glucose test, the patient must fast for at least eight to ten hours. Then the sample of blood is taken. When the amount of glucose is greater than 140, diabetes is diagnosed. An oral glucose tolerance test may be conducted for diagnosis. The patient must fast for at least ten hours and then a blood sample is taken. The patient must also drink a glucose drink and blood samples re taken every thirty minutes to one hour for two to three hours.

Blood glucose levels must remain above 200 mg to be diagnosed with diabetes. (Medical Science Bulletin Focus) Diabetes can not be detected by prenatal testing. Although scientists believe there is a hereditary link, they have not been able to isolate the gene or genes detect a carrier of type II diabetes.

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