Diabetes is the most common disease now-a-days. It is widespread in people across all age-groups, be it a child of 12 years of age or an old man of 80 years. It is caused due to the lack of a hormone called Insulin. Insulin is secreted by some cells located in the pancreas in the body. The food that we eat is broken down to a sugar called Glucose, which provides energy to our body. Insulin helps to move Glucose into the cells of the body. If Insulin is not secreted by the body, than the Glucose is unable to move into the cells. And thereby, the Glucose content or the Sugar content increases in the body, leading to a disease called Diabetes. There are two categories of people suffering from diabetes- 1. People with Type-1 Diabetes whose body is unable to produce Insulin, and thereby increasing blood Sugar levels. 2. People with Type-2 Diabetes whose body can secrete Insulin, but the cells in their body do not respond to the Insulin.
There are sufferers of diabetes in two types: Diabetes Type 1 are people who cannot produce enough insulin within their bodies and this causes their levels of blood sugar to increase as a result. Diabetes Type 2 is the result of body cells being non-responsive to the insulin the body secretes.
Weight loss, frequent and excessive urination, blurred vision, stress, irritation, heart problems, Kidney failure, are some of the symptoms of the disease. Some of the causes of diabetes are obesity, increased amount of sugar intake, excessive level of cholesterol, etc. It may also be caused due to hereditary factors. Type 1 diabetes may give invitation to Hypoglycemia and Hyperglycemia in the body. This is due to the fact that low level of glucose in the blood leads to hypoglycaemia while higher level of glucose in the blood leads to Hyperglycemia.
The treatment given to the diabetes patient requires him to take care of his diet, medication, exercising, control on stress and depression, kidney dialysis and transplant, etc. The level of glucose in the blood can be controlled with the help of a well-managed and a well-balanced diet with low cholesterol, low sugar and low fats including the green leafy vegetables etc. Type 1 diabetes is because of low level of insulin or ineffective use of it. Hence, insulin acts as a major drug for type 1 diabetes patients while exercising is also helpful in controlling the disease and increasing the responsiveness of the body to insulin which maintains the glucose level of the blood. If exercising and a healthy diet don’t response in diabetes control then there are other medications as well which act as a major cure.
Diabetes treatment also includes the replacement of insulin. Single-dose, mixed-dose, split mixed dose and multiple dose are some of the courses of replacement of insulin. The process for insulin replacement follows absorption of insulin into the blood through the injection of insulin shots into the skin below the fat. Multiple doses of insulin are given through insulin pumps which are easily available. Presently, Diabetes treatment is also given though Islet transplants, kidney transplants and pancreas transplants.
Treatments by scientists are being developed to provide treatment to diabetics which are completely pain free and come from technology using the stem cells, its availability is only a couple of years away. Stem cells from human embryos are being used within mice to further develop this specific technology. The scientists contend that injections of insulin shots can be eliminated completely from diabetic treatment. In Australia over 1,30,000 people suffer with diabetes and have to use injections of insulin shots daily. The new technology developed using stem cells would become of great use to these and others which suffer from diabetes. For the time being, the technology is a few years in need of evolving.