Diabetes Risk Factors

Diabetes is a metabolic disease in which the body’s inability to produce any or enough insulin. This causes elevated levels of glucose in the blood. This can be a very life threatening disease if left un treated. One of the symptoms are hunger and fatigue. If your body can’t get enough insulin the glucose

In the article, "Sleep and Disease Risk"(2007), "If you are not getting enough sleep at night, it could put you at a high risk for a heart disease, strokes, or high blood pressure. People can also gain weight, have a weakened immunity and poor balance." Your body needs sleep, it is a necessity for life just like water is. An example of a health problem that is most common among young adults is Sleep Apnea. Sleep Apnea is among leading sleeping diseases that is an effect from not receiving the right amount of sleep each night.

This article explains the importance of getting the perfect amount of sleep at night. The idea that sleeping for less than five hours or more than nine hours proves to have a negative effect on the human body. Sleep deprivation has a closely related link to memory retention and can cause a person to have trouble with daily task. The author continues to explain that not only is the brain effected by too little or too much sleep, but the rest of the body is also effected. Conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and even depression have links to not getting the perfect amount of sleep. The article concludes with listing tips to get the ideal amount of sleep at night, such as, going to sleep and waking up at the same time every day and limiting the amount of caffeine that is consumed throughout the day.

First, extreme fatigue may occur in individuals with type 2 diabetes because the body is being tremendously deprived of sugar which is fuel for the body thus causing sleepiness and even irritability (“Symptoms”). Second, this condition can also cause increase thirst and frequent urination. According to the Mayo Clinic this occurs because “Excess sugar building up in your bloodstream causes fluid to be pulled from the tissues.”. Third, increased hunger may occur because your body is not producing enough insulin to distribute sugar throughout, the muscles and organs become depleted of energy (“Symptoms”). Fourth, the condition affects the way the body can heal and protect itself from multiple types of infections. Fifth, blurred vision is common because when the body’s blood sugar is too high it pulls fluids from the eyes causing blurred and unfocused vision. The sixth symptom that may occur is tingling, numbness, or pain can occur in the hands or feet because the body’s tiny blood vessels are being exposed to excess sugar which can lead injury leading to the sensation of tingling, numbness, or pain in the tips of the fingers or toes (“Symptoms”). Lastly, type 2 diabetes can cause certain areas of the body, mostly in folds and creases, to appear darker than others due to insulin resistance (“Symptoms”).

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus is a disease state which increases with age and targets many ethnicities and populations.1 Type 2 diabetes is not a condition that an individual is born with, rather, it is a condition that is acquired later in life beginning as early in adolescence. The ethnicities in which type 2 diabetes is most prevalent in are: Native Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, African Americans, and Pacific Islanders. Most cases of type 2 diabetes are associated with an obese and sedentary lifestyle meaning poor eating habits and lack of exercise. In the United States, 11.3% of people 20 years old and over are diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. There are many risk factors in the development in type 2 diabetes, these risk factors include but are not limited to: family history, obesity, chronic physical inactivity, race or ethnicity, history of glucose tolerance, impaired fasting glucose, or hemoglobin Alc and hypertension. Type 2 diabetes is often assumed to be asymptomatic. However, an increase in urination lethargy has been reported in a majority of patients. There are pharmacological and nonpharmacological treatments to manage type 2 diabetes. Pharmacological treatments can vary depending on the severity of the type 2 diabetes, nonpharmacological approaches recommended are diet and exercise. The pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes occurs mainly in the brain, neurons and other non-insulin dependent tissues, in which 75% of the total body glucose disposal is

Type One Diabetes, Juvenile Diabetes, or Diabetes Mellitus; an autoimmune disease affecting millions (about 3 million in the United States) causes the body’s own immune system to target and attack beta islet cells in the pancreas which are responsible for the production of insulin, an enzyme that lowers the concentration of glucose in the blood. A century ago, diabetes was a quick death sentence; we only found how to produce artificial insulin in the 1920’s, so before that, if a patient got diabetes, they had maybe a week or two at best before the state of hyperglycemia would shut down bodily functions. When a person does not produce or receive insulin, blood glucose concentration rises, which results in a large number of inconvenient effects immediately, but it also gradually causes internal damage, typically heavily damaging extremities, nerve endings, eyes, and kidneys first, as well as producing an enzyme called ketones, which causes extreme unhealthy weight loss. On the opposite end of the spectrum, sometimes diabetics, who have to manually give themselves insulin, can accidentally give themselves too much, resulting in hypoglycemic episodes, where the body does not have enough glucose and energy to function; in some cases, this can cause the shutdown of body systems and even a quick death. Dying in one’s sleep is a constant threat to type one diabetics, as glucose levels naturally drop while fasting. Additionally, this disease is a life-sentence that typically strikes

Diabetes is caused by many factors including, Poor eating habits, physical inactivity, sleep habits, and genetics (Madeline R. Vann, 2014.) symptoms that people experience with diabetes is Urinating often, Feeling very thirsty, Feeling very hungry - even though you are eating, Extreme fatigue, Blurry vision, Cuts/bruises that are slow to heal, Tingling, pain, or numbness in the hands/feet. (American Diabetes Association, 2015) Populations that are at risk for diabetes are mostly people that are overweight, have had family members with type 2 diabetes, or are living in 1st world countries. Having an excess amount of carbohydrates in a diet can lead to diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus comprises of a collection of various dysfunctions that are characterized by presence of hyperglycemia as well as being occasioned from the combination of insulin action resistance, inappropriate or excessive secretion of glucagon, and insufficient secretion of insulin. With Type 2 diabetes mellitus, the body is either resistant to the effects of insulin, which is a hormone that is responsible for regulation of the movement of sugar into the body cells, or the body does not produce sufficient insulin in order to maintain a normal level of glucose. Some of the most common symptoms of Type 2 diabetes mellitus are increased frequency of urination and thirst caused by excess sugar in the bloodstream causing fluids to be pulled from body tissues, blurred vision due to high blood sugar causing fluid to be pulled from eye lenses, weight loss because of the inability of the body to metabolize glucose resulting in the body using alternative fuels kept in fat and muscle, and fatigue due to body cells being deprived sugar making the body feel irritated and tired. Type 2 diabetes mellitus occurs commonly as a result of prediabetes.

Recent trends show that people are getting diagnosed with type II diabetes earlier. The rate of type II diabetes in the U.S.A increased by 217% in the 0-44 year old age group between 1990 and 2009 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). Several factors increase the risk of developing type II diabetes, including diet, exercise, genetics, and sleep. Less knowingly, prolonged lack of sleep severely damages humans’ health. Sleep and one’s circadian rhythm contribute to maintaining blood glucose homeostasis (ACAM). Through this experiment, we will study the effect of various amounts of sleep on hemoglobin A1c levels among children and teens. Hemoglobin A1c levels are strong predictors of blood sugar control. The hemoglobin A1c level measures the amount of glycated hemoglobin in the blood (AACC). The more glucose in the blood, the higher the hemoglobin A1c level. We hope to use the data from this experiment to find a possible connection between amount of sleep and increased blood glucose levels, while controlling for behavioral changes such as eating habits and exercise times. Previous studies show that extended amounts of less sleep in middle-aged and older adults can increase hemoglobin A1c levels and that can increase risk of type II diabetes (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). If our findings are significant, we hope to stimulate further research in this area. This topic was chosen because if sleep does in fact have a connection to

Diabetes has effects on a cellular level, and causes cells to become weak and fatigued, due to the insulin resistance of the cell, also cells become dehydrated. The glucose being one of the most important energy sources for cells isn’t take in by the cells and without glucose basic cellular functions are unable to be achieved (Kaku 1-2).

Your body undergoes a series of natural changes while you sleep: It starts to generate higher amounts of particular hormones (growth hormone, glucagon, cortisol, and catecholamine [epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine]) that increase insulin resistance and prevent your body from lowering blood glucose naturally. Some researchers believe this surge in hormones is responsible for the increased blood glucose level.

Lack of enough sleep contributes to cardiovascular diseases; persons who take less time sleeping have a better chance of getting cardiovascular illness.

People may experience back or joint pain. Also common experiences are overweight, binge eating, fatigue, pot belly, and snoring. Each year obesity-related conditions cost over 150 billion dollars and cause an estimated 300,000 premature deaths in the US. Being overweight causes high blood pressure because the more you weigh, the more blood that needs to supply oxygen and nutrients to your body. Almost 90% of people living with type 2 diabetes are obese. Obesity can also put you at a very high risk of developing cancer, heart disease, joint problems, sleep apnea, metabolic syndrome, and psychological disadvantages.

Diabetes is a major health problem in America and has been steadily increasing in prevalence (Fowler, 2010). Diabetes is currently the seventh leading cause of death in the United States with the burden of disease much higher for racial and ethnic minorities than whites. As of 2014, approximately 29.1 million Americans—9.3 percent of the total population—have been diagnosed with diabetes, with that number increasing rapidly (CDC, 2014). Diabetes is the leading cause of blindness, end-stage kidney disease, and non-traumatic amputation. It is also a common risk factor for hypertension, stoke, and heart disease and is usual a comorbidity of obesity (Insucchi & Sherwin, 2012).

Diabetes is associated with a number of medical complications, which includes amputations of extremities, blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, hypertension, neuropathy, stroke, and can cause plaque built up within the arterial walls. However, diabetes, along with the complications associated with it, are preventable through a healthy diet and regular exercise. Weight loss improves insulin resistance and reduces the risk of developing hypertension. Smoking is another risk factor for the development of diabetes. Smoking increases the abdominal fat accumulation and insulin resistance. Sleep deprivation can also lead to diabetes. It may impair the balance of hormones regulating food intake and energy balance. (ADA)