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HEALTHY LIFE: DIABETES
November 11, 2012
By DREW DAKESSIAN
Pamplin Media Group
E
very 17 seconds, someone is diag-
nosed with diabetes, the seventh
leading cause of death in the Unit-
ed States and the leading cause of
blindnes, kidney malfunction and non-
traumatic amputations.
What exactly is diabetes? Let’s start
with the basics.
Type 1 diabetes is believed to be an auto-
immune disease in which the body’s im-
mune system attacks the beta cells in the
pancreas that produce insulin, a hormone
needed to move blood sugar, or glucose,
into cells, where it is stored and later used
for energy. People with Type 1 must con-
trol the levels of glucose in their blood by
taking insulin through regular shots or an
insulin pump and following a diet and exer-
cising.
Previously known as juvenile-onset dia-
betes, Type 1 is most often diagnosed in
children, adolescents or young adults.
Though just five to 10
percent of all people
diagnosed with diabe-
tes have Type 1, ac-
cording to the Centers
for Disease Control
and Prevention, “Each
year, more than 13,000
young people are diag-
nosed with with Type 1
diabetes.”
In the most common
form of diabetes, Type
2, either your body
does not produce
enough insulin (insulin
deficiency) or your fat,
liver and muscle cells
do not respond correctly (insulin resis-
tance). This prevents blood sugar from get-
ting into the cells and causes high levels of
glucose to build up in the bloodstream.
This condition, known as hyperglycemia,
results in damage to the body and dehydra-
tion, which in turn can bring about a dia-
betic coma.
In addition to the two main types of dia-
betes, a third type exists in the form of ges-
tational diabetes, high blood sugar that
starts or is diagnosed during pregnancy.
According to the NIHA, you are at great-
er risk for gestational diabetes if you are
older than 25 when pregnant; have a family
history of diabetes; gave birth to a baby that
weighed more than nine pounds or had a
birth defect; have high blood pressure; have
too much amniotic fluid; have had an unex-
plained miscarriage or stillbirth; or were
overweight before pregnancy.
“Gestational diabetes is more a Type
2-like condition because it’s insulin resis-
tant,” Kain said. “The body’s still making
insulin, but if you don’t have the classic
risk factors for Type 2 diabetes, around
somewhere betweenWeek 24 andWeek 28
of the pregnancy, they’ll administer an oral
glucose tolerance test.”
Diabetes is associated with myriad risk
factors.
“A lot of bad stuff can happen if diabetes
is not paid attention to,” said Don Kain, a
registered dietician and diabetes educator
with the Harold Schnitzer Diabetes Center
at Oregon Health & Science University.
“The good news is that if you pay attention
to it and manage it, none of that stuff has to
happen.”
The American Diabetes Association
notes that in many people, the develop-
ment of Type 1 diabetes seems to take
many years. In Type 1, an acute infection
causes the body to make autoantibodies,
proteins that attack that mistakenly attack
the body’s beta cells. Once destroyed, beta
cells cannot be rebuilt.
Type 2 diabetes, meanwhile, is associat-
ed with diet and lifestyle. While physical
activity uses up glucose as energy and
makes your cells more sensitive to insulin,
according to the Mayo Foundation for Med-
ical Education and Research, the more fat-
ty tissue you have, the more resistant your
cells are to insulin. Your risk of Type 2 is
also greater if your body stores fat primar-
ily in your abdomen.
“Diabetes is kind of exploding, especially
in the United States,” Kain said, “and it
kind of mirrors the obesity epidemics.”
Hispanics, African Americans, Ameri-
can Indians, Asian Americans and Pacific
Islanders and are more likely to develop
Type 2 diabetes thanWhites, who have the
highest rate of Type 1.
And, Kain noted, “The older you are, the
more at risk you are for developing diabe-
tes.”
Both types of diabetes are becoming in-
creasingly prevalent, especially in the
South.
“Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana ... my
opinion is that it’s the type of diet that’s
consumed down there. People don’t vege-
tables; they eat fried vegetables.”
“In Oregon the incidence of diabetes is
not as high as it is in other parts of the
country,” Kain said, “but it’s growing in Or-
egon as well.”
According to United Health Foundation
rankings from 2011, “In the past five years,
diabetes increased from 6.7 percent to 7.2
percent of adults. Now 213,000 Oregon
adults have diabetes.”
Results of a joint study by the CDC and
the National Institutes of Health revealed
that the prevalence of Type 2 increased 21
percent among American youth from 2001
to 2009, while Type 1 rose 23 percent.
The medical community agrees that it is
absolutely essential for young people, es-
pecially the children of women who are
obese or have Type 2 diabetes, get regular
exercise and make healthy food choices.
“In Oregon
the incidence
of diabetes is
not as high as
it is in other
parts of the
country,”
— Don Kain,
registered dietician
and diabetes educator,
OHSU
Upcoming diabetes events:
■
Circle on the Court:
the kick-off event
for the Pacific Northwest Diabetes Health
& Wellness Week. The event takes place
Nov. 10 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Rose
Garden Arena and is free to the public. It’s
a day dedicated to bringing awareness
and education to our community about
living a healthy and active life.
■
5th Annual Pacific Northwest
Diabetes Summit:
a program for both
types of diabetes on Nov. 17. There is no
cost to attend the program, but you must
preregister.
Causes and symptoms of diabetes
Diabetes is caused by the way your body makes or
uses insulin, which is necessary for the body to move
sugar from the bloodstream and into muscle, fat and
liver cells, where it can be used for energy.
TYPE 1 DIABETES
With this type of diabetes, most frequently diag-
nosed in children, teenagers or young adults, the body
makes little or no insulin.
While the exact cause is unknown, experts suspect
it stems from an autoimmune disorder, with an infec-
tion or some other trigger causing the body to attack
insulin-producing cells, according to the National
Institutes of Health.
Genetics, likely, also plays a role. According to the
American Diabetes Association, in most cases, some-
one with Type 1 diabetes inherited risk factors from both
parents. Environmental triggers and early diet may also
play roles. For instance, Type 1 diabetes develops more
often in the wintertime than in the summer, and it’s
more common in cold climates, according to ADA.
Studies also have shown Type 1 diabetes is less com-
mon among people who were breastfed as infants.
Symptoms
■
Extreme thirst
■
Hunger
■
Fatigue or irritability
■
Weight loss
■
Frequent urination
TYPE 2 DIABETES
Type 2 diabetes occurs when someone’s fat, liver and
muscle cells don’t respond the way they should to insu-
lin. When this happens, sugar in the bloodstream can’t
get into cells where it would otherwise be stored for
energy, and so sugar begins to build up in the blood.
Increased body fat contributes to the development
of Type 2 diabetes, although the disease can emerge
in thin people as well, particularly if they’re elderly,
according to NIH.
Type 2 diabetes is more closely linked to family his-
tory and lineage. Genetics and lifestyle play strong
roles in the disease’s development. Obesity tends to run
in families, as do eating and exercise habits. Sedentary
lifestyles, unhealthy diets and too much fat around the
waistline all increase a person’s risk for Type 2 diabetes,
according to ADA.
Symptoms
■
Any of the Type 1 diabetes symptoms
■
Frequent or recurring infections, including skin and
bladder infections
■
Blurred vision
■
Slow-to-heal cuts and bruises
■
Tingling sensations, pain or numbness in the feet or
hands
— Kara Hansen Murphy
—
Sources: A.D.A.M. Medical Encyclopedia via MedlinePlus, a National
Institutes of Health website; American Diabetes Association.
Living with diabetes:
EXERCISE
and a
HEALTHY DIET
DREAMSTIME PHOTO