Diabetes Cause

Diabetes Mellitus affects over 16 million Americans and in the last few decades, its prevalence has increased and will likely continue to rise. There are however 3 types of diabetes; type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes and gestational diabetes. Type 1 diabetes cause occurs when the pancreas cells that make insulin are destroyed due to a lack of insulin. This may occur due to a reaction known as autoimmune reaction. The body starts attacking and destroying its own cells in the pancreas eventually destroying most if not all of the insulin manufacturing cells. While it is not yet clear why this happens, a number of explanations have bee proposed. These include; an infection with a specific bacteria or a virus can make this happen, exposure to chemical toxins from food or even exposure to cow’s milk as an infant has also been shown to trigger the autoimmune reaction in the body.

Type 2 diabetes cause occurs when the receptors on body cells that normally respond to insulin fail to be stimulated, a reaction called insulin resistance. When this occurs, the body produces more insulin eventually resulting in over-production and the insulin-manufacturing cells fail. Alternatively, this type of diabetes can develop when there is simply not enough insulin or when the insulin that is available is abnormal and therefore does not work. Type 2 diabetes is more likely to occur in people advanced in years, those who are obese and in those who are not physically active. There are also other rarer causes of diabetes that have also been documented. These include certain medicines, during the pregnancy, in what is called gestational diabetes and as a result of disease that damages the pancreas and affects its ability to produce insulin. A good example of such a disease is pancreatitis.

Another diabetes cause is the heredity. If both parents have type 2 diabetes, there is a chance that their children will have it too. In identical twins, if one of them develops type 2 diabetes, the chance of the other developing diabetes is nearly 100 percent as well. Drugs such as steroids and Dilantin have also been shown to have a bearing on diabetes cause. Drugs such as alloxan, thiazide diuretics and streptozocin are also toxic to the pancreas and can cause diabetes as well. To reduce the chances of developing type 2 diabetes, regular exercise and healthy dietary habits will go a long way in doing this and thus avoid the risks that come with developing this disease.