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Diabetes, The, And Epidemiology Of This Disease

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INTRODUCTION
Diabetes is one of the fastest growing and costly medical conditions that is present in our world today. Researchers suggest that over that last five to ten years, the numbers continue to increase rapidly. The rate of increase has been so rapid in the developed and developing world that it has become a worldwide concern- one of epidemic proportions. During this paper we will be discussing what diabetes is, its clinical manifestations, the pathogenesis and epidemiology of this disease. We will review its prevalence in our country and the developing world. Finally, we will share some of the peer reviewed methods of prevention with our readers.
WHAT IS DIABETES?
The American Diabetes association defines diabetes mellitus as a group of metabolic disease characterized by hyperglycemia resulting from defects in insulin secretion, insulin action, or both. More simply put, diabetes is a disease in which your blood glucose, or blood sugar, levels are too high. Insulin is a hormone produced by the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas. This hormone regulates the level of sugar in your blood. Without enough insulin, the cells do not open up to take in the sugar and use it as an energy source. This results in the glucose level in the blood staying high. The result of chronically elevated blood sugar levels is diabetes.
HISTORY OF DIABETES
Scientists and physicians have been documenting the condition now known as diabetes since the Middle Ages. The first known

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