Causes: Myths and Facts

While, the cause of diabetes is unknown there are few possibilities which can turn into diabetes if you don’t take care of them in time being, out of all the reasons the most common reasons

1.       Many believe that stress is a cause of diabetes,

There is a possible link between stress and diabetes, you might have heard about “stress eating”, when a person is stressed he eats more and exercises less which increases the quantity of carbs and fatty acids making the work of own digestive system more heavy as a result you become obese and obesity is linked to both type one and type 2 diabetes, as an old proverb said in India “ati sarvatra varjate” which literally translates to excess of anything is dangerous so stress eating can cost you a life time medication :P

2.      Auto immune disease

As the name itself suggests auto immune disease is said to be a condition in which the body’s immune system fights against the healthy cells of the body instead of the other cells

And the list goes on …….

It's myth (image source google)

There is no definite reason that can be pin pointed to the cause of diabetes, the mighty saying that diabetes is caused when you eat lots of sugar is a MYTH and it is ought not to be believed, eating sugar/sweet desserts has nothing to do with diabetes.

What is Diabetes?

Diabetes mellitus more commonly known as Diabetes is a condition in which the body’s Pancreas

1) Do not produce insulin

2) Do not produce enough insulin

3) Your body suffers from insulin resistance (insulin produced does not function properly.)

Due to this our body is unable to properly use and store glucose. There is NO CURRENT CURE for diabetes but there are several ways to control your sugar levels.

Diagnosis

well there can be a lot of test that can be written or recommended to you by your doctor in order to properly understand what kind of diabetes do you have, and what kind of medication would be best for your body type

• Glycated hemoglobin (A1C) test: this is the first and the most common test written by doctors to know how long have you been suffering with diabetes, this test gives an average blood sugar level of pas 3 months/ 100 days, it calculates the percentage of sugar/glucose attached to your hemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying protein in red blood cells. The higher your blood sugar levels, the more hemoglobin you'll have with sugar attached. An A1C level of 6.5 percent or higher on two separate tests indicates you have diabetes. A result between 5.7 and 6.4 percent is considered pre-diabetes, which indicates a high risk of developing diabetes. Normal levels are below 5.7 percent.If the A1C test isn't available, or if you have certain conditions — such as if you're pregnant or have an uncommon form of hemoglobin (known as a hemoglobin variant).

Note: generally the range of HBA1C/A1C (as it is populary known) is often revised by the international diabetic organisation, recently the normal range of a1c's upper limit was changed from 6.4 to 7.2, as lifestyle has a great effect in your glycemic index

once it gets confirmed that you are a diabetic patient, your doctor might want to know what kind of diabetes do you have either type1 or type 2 so he recommends this test

• C-peptide test 

C-peptide test is a blood test which is carried out to find out how much insulin your body is producing 

To measure level of c-peptide a fasting blood test is taken.

You will be asked not to eat or drink (certain fluids) for 8 to 12 hours before the test.

If you take blood glucose lowering medication you will likely be asked to stop taking these in the run up to the test.

For the blood test itself, a sample of blood will be taken from your arm and it shouldn’t take much more than a minute.

Levels of c-peptide will be measured as well as the blood glucose level.

• The normal range for a c-peptide test is: 0.51 to 2.72 nanograms per millilitre (ng/mL)
• This may also be expressed as: 0.17-0.90 nanomoles per litre (nmol/L)

if the c-peptide values are less than the recommended values then, this could be an indicator that the person is either suffering from type 1 diabetes or might have developed a sever infection or Addison's disease and if the values are higher than the recommended values then it can indicate that the person is likely to be either a type 2 diabetic or may have developed insulinoma (unless a medicine triggers those reactions)

• Random blood sugar test. A blood sample will be taken at a random time. Blood sugar values are expressed in milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or millimoles per liter (mmol/L). Regardless of when you last ate, a random blood sugar level of 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) or higher suggests diabetes, especially when coupled with any of the signs and symptoms of diabetes, such as frequent urination and extreme thirst.

• Fasting blood sugar test. A blood sample will be taken after an overnight fast. A fasting blood sugar level less than 100 mg/dL (5.6 mmol/L) is normal. A fasting blood sugar level from 100 to 125 mg/dL (5.6 to 6.9 mmol/L) is considered prediabetes. If it's 126 mg/dL (7 mmol/L) or higher on two separate tests, you have diabetes.

• Oral glucose tolerance test. For this test, you fast overnight, and the fasting blood sugar level is measured. Then you drink a sugary liquid, and blood sugar levels are tested periodically for the next two hours.
  A blood sugar level less than 140 mg/dL (7.8 mmol/L) is normal. A reading between 140 and 199 mg/dL (7.8 mmol/L and 11.0 mmol/L) indicates pre-diabetes. A reading of 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) or higher after two hours may indicate diabetes.

There are three types of diabetes:

Type 1 Diabetes – Accounts for only 5- 10% of all Diabetic cases. Here, our body stops producing any insulin - a hormone responsible for converting glucose to energy. This typically develops in children (Juvenile Diabetes) or young adults but may occur at a later stage as well. People with Type 1 diabetes are insulin dependent and therefore have to take insulin injections frequently.

REMEDY

Insulin injections

Ask your doctor or diabetes educator to understand how to calculate dosage

Type 2 Diabetes – Accounts for 90% of the total population. This occurs mainly with age in people who are overweight and have for long not led a healthy lifestyle comprising a balance of nutrition and physical activity. Type 2 Diabetes is due to insulin deficiency or insulin resistance in the body.

REMEDY

Diet control

Exercise

Continuous monitoring using a glucometer

Medication

Gestational diabetes- During pregnancy, women without any history of Diabetes in the family, may develop high blood glucose usually around the 24th week – this is referred to as Gestational diabetes. This diabetes may or may not continue after pregnancy but it's important to follow your doctor's advice regarding blood glucose (blood sugar) levels while you're planning your pregnancy, so you and your baby both remain healthy. Also, women with Gestational Diabetes are at a higher risk of developing type 2 Diabetes later in life.