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What Is Type 2 Diabetes?
We need food to give us energy. The digestive system breaks down the foods we eat into a simple sugar called glucose. Glucose then passes into the bloodstream, where it becomes available for the cells to use for growth and energy. But the hormone insulin is needed for the cells to convert glucose into energy.
In diabetes, the pancreas produces little or no insulin, or the cells throughout the body are unable to respond to the insulin that is produced (insulin resistance). The end result is a buildup of glucose in the blood. Elevated blood glucose levels are responsible for many of the health problems associated with diabetes.
There are three main types of diabetes:
Type 1 diabetes
- Previously known as insulin-dependent or juvenile diabetes.
- In this type of diabetes, the pancreas produces little or no insulin.
- Treatment involves monitoring blood sugar levels and using insulin, along with eating a healthy diet, exercising and other lifestyle efforts.
- While type 1 diabetes can develop at any age, it most commonly develops in childhood or the teen years.
Type 2 diabetes
- Previously known as non-insulin dependent or adult-onset diabetes.
- This type of diabetes results when the body is resistant to the effects of insulin so the body's cells cannot properly use it. Another factor can be that the body produces some but not enough insulin.
- People are encouraged to eat a healthy diet, exercise regularly and manage their weight. If these efforts are not enough, oral medications and/or insulin may be needed to control blood glucose levels.
- This is by far the most common form of diabetes and occurs in children as well as adults.
Gestational diabetes
- Gestational diabetes is the development of glucose intolerance during pregnancy in women who did not have diabetes before.
- This type of diabetes is managed with healthy diet and exercise, and insulin, if needed, to control blood sugar levels.
How common is type 2 diabetes?
More than 14 million people in the United States have been diagnosed with diabetes, according to estimates from National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. Of those, about 90 percent to 95 percent have type 2 diabetes. People with type 2 diabetes usually develop the condition after age 45, and the risk for getting it increases with age. Today, though, the number of children with type 2 diabetes is increasing rapidly.
In a person with type 2 diabetes, the pancreas produces insulin, but the body is resistant to the effects of insulin, or your body produces some, but not enough, insulin to maintain a normal glucose level. The result is a buildup of glucose in the blood, due to the body's inability to use it effectively as a major source of energy.
Risk factors for type 2 diabetes include:
- Being overweight. Being overweight increases your risk for type 2 diabetes. Insulin resistance increases with increased weight.
- Heredity. Your risk of type 2 diabetes increases if you have a close family member (a parent or sibling) with type 2 diabetes.
- Age. The risk for developing type 2 diabetes increases with age, especially over age 45.
- Race. Type 2 diabetes is more common among American Indians, African Americans, Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders and Hispanics.
- Sedentary Lifestyle. Studies show that people at high risk for type 2 diabetes can prevent or delay the onset of the disease by exercising at least 30 minutes a day for five or more days of the week. Along with a balanced diet, regular exercise can help you reach and maintain a healthy weight.
- Women who have had gestational diabetes. Women who develop gestational diabetes have an increased risk of getting type 2 diabetes later on in life.
- Prediabetes. People who have been diagnosed with prediabetes or impaired glucose tolerance have an increased risk of getting type 2 diabetes. Talk to your doctor about steps you can take now to lower this risk.
Recent discoveries in type 2 diabetes
Diabetes research efforts have led to better management of not only the disease itself but also the complications that are associated with it. Some of the more recent advances in type 2 diabetes research include:
- The discovery of several genes associated with type 2 diabetes.
- Increasing knowledge about the relationship between obesity and type 2 diabetes. Health campaigns have increased public awareness of health risks of obesity.
- New and more effective treatments have become available through research. People are now benefiting from improved forms of insulin, a range of oral medications to control blood sugar and reduce the need for insulin, and new drugs that may not only control blood sugar, but also strengthen the activity of a person's own insulin-producing cells.
- Kidney disease can now be detected earlier by standard laboratory tests, making early treatment more available. Improved control of blood pressure with antihypertensive drugs called ACE inhibitors and ARBs can prevent or delay the progression of kidney disease to kidney failure.
This article was reviewed by Melinda Ratini, D.O., M.S.
06/2008
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