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Diabetes : A Common Metabolic Disorder

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Diabetes is a common metabolic disorder that occurs from defects in insulin action, production, or both, therefore, the body cannot regulate the levels of glucose in the blood. The problem may be caused by too little insulin or the body 's resistance to using the insulin that is secreted by the pancreas, a small organ that lies behind the lower part of the stomach (Laberge, 2011). As a result, glucose in the blood cannot be absorbed or used by the cells of the body. There are two major types of diabetes mellitus, type 1 and type 2. In order to diagnose diabetes laboratory tests such as urine tests and blood tests are done. Clinistix and Diastix are paper strips or dipsticks that change color when dipped in urine that show the amount of glucose in the urine based on the change in color (Laberge, 2011). Another type of a dipstick test is a Ketostix which is a urine test that detects ketones in the urine (Laberge, 2011) Examples of blood tests that may be used for diagnosis are hemoglobin A1C test, finger-stick test, fasting blood glucose test, and glucose tolerance test (Laberg, 2011). A hemoglobin A1C test measures the amount of blood sugar that is attached to the hemoglobin in red blood cells. An A1C level of 6.5 percent or higher on two separate tests indicates the patient has diabetes (Laberge, 2011, p. 5). The finger-stick test is often done as a screener in a doctor’s office and is also used by diabetic patients at home to monitor their blood sugar levels, the

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