A Brief Note On Diabetes Mellitus Type II - 1141 Words

One of the diseases more prevalent in my family is Diabetes Mellitus type II. It has been the cause of death of one of my paternal great grandmothers, and now it is starting to develop in my maternal grandmother as prediabetes. Therefore, it is very important for me to identify the characteristics of this disease, its prevalence, its risk factors and prevention, and its treatments. According to the American Diabetes Association, type 2 diabetes, or non-insulin dependent diabetes, is defined as a chronic condition in which the body does not use insulin properly, this is known as insulin resistance. This condition is caused because the pancreas is not able to produce the insulin necessary to normalize blood glucose levels, so these levels†¦show more content†¦These terms stand for increased thirst, hunger, and urination respectively. Hunger may increase because cells do not receive enough energy in form of glucose, which can also cause fatigue. Weight loss is another symptom. As the body cannot metabolize the sugar, the body uses other sources for energy. Blurred vision is another symptom of diabetes. As glucose is too high on blood, fluid may be pulled from the eye lenses affecting the ability to focus. In addition, as diabetes affects the healing and resisting infections’ ability, slow-healing sores or frequent infections have a high incidence in diabetics. Finally, the insulin resistance may produce acanthosis nigricans which is a production of areas of darkened skin. In the long term, more serious conditions may be developed from diabetes. One of these complications is cardiovascular disease. Diabetes increses the risk of heart attack, stroke and hypertension among others. Diabetes may also end in neuropathy, which expresses in tingling, numbness, and even loss of all sense in affected limbs. This also may lead to foot damage, which can end up in amputation of affected areas with gangrene. Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, and erectil e dysfunction can occur also because of the nerve damage. Nephropathy is another complication. Diabetes damages the filtering system of kidneys leading to kidney failure. This might end up requiring dialysis or kidney transplant. Diabetes can provoke eye