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Obesity : Factors Associated With Type 2 Diabetes

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Obesity remains one of the leading factors associated with Type 2 Diabetes. Type 2 Diabetes, previously identified as Adult-Onset Diabetes, affects the way one metabolizes glucose, a crucial energy source for the body. Type 2 Diabetes also causes an increase or decrease in insulin production. Insulin resistance occurs when the body prohibits the usage of insulin. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), Type 2 Diabetes “accounts for 90 to 95 percent of diabetic cases”; making it the prominent form of diabetes. The CDC indicates Type 2 Diabetes results from a combination of genetic and environmental influences ("2014 National Diabetes Statistics Report."). Obesity, a significant risk factor, enhances the effects of Type 2 Diabetes leading to liver disease and pancreatitis. The lack of muscle mass also contributes to Type 2 Diabetes, making it difficult for the elimination of glucose from the body. Excess levels of fat heighten inflammation in the body, changing the way it reacts and responds to insulin.
The additional levels of fat stimulate inflammation throughout the body. Described by Vivian Fonseca, MD, inflammation, first targets adipose or fat cell; acting comparable to a protective mechanism, preventing the body from losing motility and dying (Vann). Juan F. Navarro and Carmen Mora, students from Oxford University stated, “In obesity, activation starts from the process of pro-inflammatory cytokines [proteins] such as tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-1β

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