What Are The Main Causes Of Diabetes?
Here, we explore the basics of What Diabetes is, the different Types of Diabetes and the Main Causes of Diabetes.
Definition: What is Diabetes?
Diabetes is a lifelong condition that causes a person's blood sugar level to become too high - it is a chronic health condition that affects how your body turns food into energy.
What are the different types of diabetes?
There are 2 main types of diabetes:
- type 1 diabetes – where the body's immune system attacks and destroys the cells that produce insulin
- type 2 diabetes – where the body does not produce enough insulin, or the body's cells do not react to insulin
Type 2 diabetes is far more common than type 1. In the UK, around 90% of all adults with diabetes have type 2.
Most of the food you eat is broken down into sugar (also called glucose) and released into your bloodstream. When your blood sugar goes up, it signals your pancreas to release insulin. The insulin moves glucose out of the blood and into cells where it's broken down to produce energy.
However, if you have diabetes, your body is unable to break down glucose into energy. This is because there's either not enough insulin to move the glucose, or the insulin produced does not work properly.
What are the main causes of diabetes?
There are a variety of factors that can put you at higher risk of Type 2 diabetes, these include:
- If you are overweight or have a large waist
- If you are over the age of 40
- If there is a history of diabetes within your family
Some people can remain undiagnosed for up to twelve years, so if you fall within these risk factors, it is most definitely worth booking an appointment with your GP, even if it is just for peace of mind.
You can help manage Type 2 Diabetes by making lifestyle changes such as:
- Healthy eating
- Regular exercise
- Diabetes medication or insulin therapy (only in some cases)
- Regular blood sugar monitoring
If you have Type 1 Diabetes, there are no lifestyle changes you can make to prevent Diabetes.
People diagnosed with type 1 diabetes also require regular insulin injections for the rest of their life.
What are the symptoms of diabetes?
Taken from the NHS England, symptoms of diabetes include:
- feeling very thirsty
- peeing more frequently than usual, particularly at night
- feeling very tired
- weight loss and loss of muscle bulk
- cuts or wounds that heal slowly
- blurred vision
Visit your GP as soon as possible if you experience these main symptoms of diabetes.
Other Diabetic Blogs and Recipes
The Skinny Food Co have multiple blogs based on Diabetes which you can find via our Health and Wellbeing Blog page.
We also have lots of Diabetic Friendly Recipes incorporating products from our Sugar Free Range which you can find via our Recipes page, or visit our Delicious Diabetic Friendly Recipes blog.
Need help?
The NHS England Website has a tonne of information on Diabetes:
You can also follow online accounts and advocates for Diabetes - there's some much help, guidance and advice online for Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes!
We have been very fortunate to be of assistance to lots of people living with diabetes and our products are suitable for diabetic. Look out for the Sugarwise logo and read more about Sugarwise here.
Shop The Skinny Food Co Collection today!
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