This Essay Will Address the Role of Health Screening and Health Promotion in Regards to Diabetes Mellitus

Along with all the worries and complications a woman might face while pregnant, one of the more serious conditions is gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes occurs in 4% of all pregnancies (Seibel, 2009). Many women are not informed about the disease, some may not know that they need to be tested, and others may have heard about it, but want more information on what may cause it and/or how to prevent and treat it. Either way this disease needs to be taken seriously by every pregnant woman or woman planning to get pregnant to protect not only herself but the unborn child.

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus is one of the most common health challenges world-wide, especially in older adults. In this paper, I am going to delve into how health promotion can be a significant factor in reducing the risks of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in the aforementioned demographic. Through academic research and resources, in my first paragraph I will be providing the definition of Health Promotion and its importance for patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. My second paragraph will be discussing the pathophysiology to aid in the comprehension of how this health challenge is present in the body, along with patient responses and complications. Lastly, I will be touching on health promotion interventions, which will also be incorporated with specific ideas and information to aid individuals in promoting health and preventing development and/or advancement of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

Epidemiologic evidence that is related to the prevention of diabetes in for adults can be found in many places in the literature. Some issues that come up are how according to Patel, Misra, and Balasubramanyam (2017) the increase in diagnosis of type 2 diabetes in developing countries has escalated rapidly due to an increase in populations, overall aging of the population, urbanization, and increase prevalence of obesity. Patel, Misra, and Balasubramanyam (2017) also projects that the number of individual that are diagnosed with diabetes in 2040 will have increased to 642 million adults globally compared to the 415 million adults globally who are currently diagnosed with diabetes and in the US, there was 86 million adults who are

“Every year in the United States, 13,000 children are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, and more than 1 million American kids and adults deal with the disease every day” (Downshen, 2012, p. 1). This disorder affects many children through their improper food intake and therefore the body’s use of too little or too much glucose and sugars in blood. If a child’s or any person’s blood sugar levels are not kept in check, many issues can arise. With Type I diabetes, the immune system will attack itself and destroy all cells in the pancreas that produce insulin, therefore eliminating the body’s ability to produce insulin. There is no definitive scientific proof as to why this necessarily happens, but the only connection that has been made is the fact this phenomenon is hereditary and deals with the genes of a person passed down from past family members. Unfortunately, there is nothing that can prevent Type I diabetes. There is also no way to cure Type I diabetes as it requires some form of medical treatment for the rest of an individual’s life. For many, daily insulin injections of insulin pumps are the common ways to control blood glucose levels (Dowshen, 2012).

Gestational diabetes is usually diagnosed during the pregnancy of a woman. The affected women have high levels of blood glucose which cannot be compensated by insulin from the body resulting in increased levels of glucose. Reworded from the MediLexicon source, around ten to twenty percent of affected women need to take regulating medication in order to prevent complications at their child’s birth. Complications can happen if the diabetes is not properly treated in time. Pregnant women are at most risk of Gestational diabetes if they were on a high animal fat or cholesterol diet. Although it may not get as much attention as the other two types of diabetes, Gestational diabetes is caused by similar circumstances to those that cause type 1 and type 2 (MediLexicon International).

Type 1 diabetes is usually common in children, which is why it is also referred to as juvenile diabetes mellitus. Type 1 diabetes is most likely to occur in children who have a genetic predisposition for autoimmune diseases. Autoimmune diseases are diseases in which the body attacks its healthy cells in an attempt to rid the body of toxic pathogens. Ironically, this does more harm than help. However, according to David Bejerklie in his article, “A Body Making War on Itself,” he explains an alternate cause for the disease. He informs, “The type 1 disease has a strong genetic predisposition, but that alone doesn’t explain why people get it. Researchers believe an environmental trigger is also necessary,” (Bejerklie, 2003, para. 2). One more alternate cause that is being studied is the Coxsackie B virus which starts the process of destroying the necessary cells in order to make the host have diabetes. Bejerklie theorizes, “The theory is that the immune system gets fired up to ward off a viral infection, then turns its attention to pancreatic islet cells because a protein on the cell surface is chemically similar to the virus,” (Bejerklie, 2003, para 2).

In the year 2013, it is estimated that 382 million people have diabetes; however, this is number will likely increase to 592 million by the year 2035. (1)

Diabetes mellitus has risen to epidemic proportions in the United States, from 1980 through 2011, the number of adults with diabetes has increased immensely from 5.5 million to 19.6 million (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], n.d.). Diabetes global prevalence research by Wild, Roglic, Green, Sicree, and King (2004) predicted that, the total number of people with diabetes will rise from 171 million in 2000 to 366 million in 2030. Diabetes has many causative factors that encompass genetic, lifestyle, and environmental categories. Diabetes can vary in different individuals in correlation with their surrounding population and environmental exposures. Individuals who manage their diabetes often need specific plans and counseling.

According to the American Diabetes Association, the prevalence of gestational diabetes is as high as 9.2% in pregnant women due to obesity or being overweight. Not only can it be harmful to the mother, but it can also be harmful to her baby. Gestational diabetes can increase the chances of pregnant women delivering a baby that weighs more than 9 pounds. Having gestational diabetes can also increase the mother’s chance for needing a cesarean section delivery. Some other risk factors that the mother can be a candidate for developing gestational diabetes by is having a family history of diabetes (especially if a parent or sibling has diabetes) and having gestational diabetes in previous pregnancies. Pregnant women don’t need to have had diabetes before in order to develop gestational diabetes. They can just have high blood glucose levels during pregnancy to get gestational diabetes. There is a process in which the baby has to go through inside their mother’s womb. The placenta is what supports the baby as it grows. Hormones from the placenta help the baby develop. But these hormones also block the action of the mother 's insulin in her body. This problem is called insulin resistance. Insulin resistance makes it hard for the mother 's body to use insulin. She may need up to three times as much insulin. Gestational diabetes starts when your body is not able to make and use all the insulin it needs for pregnancy. Without enough insulin, glucose

The World Health Organisation (WHO, 2016) reports diabetes mellitus (DM) around the world has risen from 108 million in 1980 to 422 million in 2014. The global prevalence over the age of 18 has risen from 4.7% in 1980 to 8.5% in 2014. The number of new cases in 2012 for people over the age of twenty in America was 1.7 million, and 29.1 million of the population living with diabetes and 27.8% undiagnosed (National Diabetes Statistics Report 2014, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015). That is 1 in 11 of the world’s population who are living with diabetes and 47% of adults undiagnosed (Diabetes Australia, 2015). According to self-reported data, (Australian Bureau of Statistics ABS 2011/2012) survey has been used to estimate the national prevalence of type II diabetes in Australia. An estimated 849,000 Australians over the age of eighteen, self-reported that they had type II diabetes, this corresponds for 5% of the Australian adult population. The prevalence of type II among Australian adults was higher in men (5%) more than women (4%) and the rate of diabetes increases with age. The incidence in Australia, (The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 2014) has stated that there is no reliable national data available to estimate the overall incidence of diabetes mellitus. It is difficult to capture as many new cases are recorded after the condition has started, remained undiagnosed or they do not require insulin

Diabetes is a metabolic illness that leads to high glucose due to either insulin inadequacy, insulin resistance or both. According to the World Health Organization at least 171 million people (2.8% of the world population) suffered from diabetes in year 2000. This number will almost double by year 2030. It is expected that more than 70% of total diabetic patients in the world will be from developing countries by year 2030 [23].

Type 1 diabetes (insulin-dependent), often develops in childhood or early adulthood and is the outcome of the reaction of the autoimmune system which is produced as a result of the destruction of beta cells from the pancreas, when the body does not produce insulin. This usually happens because the insulin secreting cells of the pancreas do not function, or they are simply not there, have been destroyed or they are in small quantities that they cannot produce any insulin to properly control blood sugar levels. Since insulin is necessary to sustain life, the missing insulin has to be replaced and it is managed with regular insulin injections, the dose which is

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) occurs when the pancreas produces little to no insulin, a hormone the body requires providing glucose with the ability to enter cells (Mayoclinic, 2014). It is the absorption of glucose that allows the body to manufacture its energy (Mayoclinic, 2014). T1D affects roughly 5-10% of patients with diabetes and is escalating annually by 2-5% (Medscape, 2014). T1D is a chronic condition that affects not only approximately 1 in every 400-600 children but 50% of those diagnosed develop T1D when they are older than 20 (Medscape, 2014; Tufts, 2014). This metabolic disease can be detected as early as 4 years old with the peak onset age between

Diabetes is the fifth deadliest disease in the United States, and it has no cure. For women who do not currently have diabetes, pregnancy brings the risk of gestational diabetes. Gestational diabetes develops in 2% to 5% of all pregnancies but disappears when a pregnancy is over. Women who have had gestational diabetes or have given birth to a baby weighting more than 9 pounds are at an increased risk for developing type 2 diabetes later in life. Because of the increasing lifespan of women and the rapid growth of minority populations, the number of women in the United States at high risk for diabetes and its complications is increasing. Because women are often influential in affecting behavior change in their own children and families, focusing prevention efforts on them is a good way to improve not only their health but also the health of those they love.

I will first state some facts about diabetes before giving a health promoting and prevention methods. Given insights from the Centers for Disease Control site, 17.0 million individuals in the United States, roughly 6.2% of the populace, have diabetes. Of this 17 million individuals, 11.1 million are analyzed, and 5.9 million are undiscovered. In the diverse age bunches, around 151,000 individuals under 20 years old have diabetes, roughly 0.19% of individuals in this age bunch. In the 20 and more established age bunch 16.9 million and 8.6% of individuals have diabetes. The 65 and more seasoned age gathering has 7.0 million and 20.1% surprisingly with diabetes (Cdc.gov, 2015).