Find Out What Are The Two Main Causes of Diabetes Mellitus

Being diagnosed with diabetes means your blood sugar levels are consistently too high. Does this mean that you have the condition because you eat a lot of sugar? The short answer is ‘NO’.

While consuming large amounts of sugar or unprocessed food can increase your chances of developing diabetes, it is just one piece of the puzzle.

Diabetes is a complex disease and there are several different reasons why you may develop the condition. This article discusses the two main causes of diabetes and helps you understand the broader factors involved.

If you’re one of the millions of Indians living with diabetes, you know that no matter how hard you try, sometimes your blood sugar can get out of whack. To avoid derailing your best efforts in managing the condition, use Krishna’s Diabic Care Juice— one of the best Ayurvedic medicines for diabetes, enriched with 11 herbs that naturally help in controlling blood sugar.

Read More: Ayurvedic Treatment For Type 2 Diabetes

Before we get started with the causes of diabetes, let’s first understand its types

Type 1 diabetes

This is an autoimmune disease in which your body’s defence system attacks and destroys the insulin-producing cells in your pancreas (gland situated deep in your belly). As a result, your body is left with no insulin.

“Insulin is a hormone which functions as a special key that unlocks the doors to the cells in your body and lets the glucose (sugar) enter, which is then used for energy production. ”

In the absence of insulin, sugar can’t get into your cells and remains in the bloodstream, leading to high blood glucose levels.

Read more about type 1 diabetes

Type 2 diabetes

This is much more common than type 1 and affects around 90% of those living with diabetes. In this condition your pancreas does not produce enough insulin, your body cells become resistant to insulin or both. Insulin resistance means that your body’s cells don’t respond as well to insulin as they should. This results in glucose build-up in your bloodstream instead of being used for energy.

Read more about type 2 diabetes

Gestational diabetes

This is a type of diabetes that some women may develop during pregnancy. It usually goes away after the baby is born, but it can increase a woman’s risk of developing type 2 diabetes later in life.

Some less common types of diabetes are:

• Type 3c diabetes: This condition arises when there is damage (other than autoimmune damage) to your pancreas from illness, surgery, or other causes that can impair its ability to produce insulin.
• LADA (Latent autoimmune diabetes in adults): A type of diabetes that shares characteristics of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes but develops at a much slower rate and affects people over 30.
• MODY (Maturity-onset diabetes of the young): This is a rare form of inherited diabetes that differs from both type 1 and type 2 diabetes and is caused by mutations in a single gene. These mutations affect proteins involved in insulin production or function.
• Neonatal diabetes: a rare form of diabetes that affects infants, typically diagnosed within the first 6 months of life, can be permanent or temporary.
• Brittle diabetes: A severe form of type 1 with frequent and extreme blood sugar swings.

All types of diabetes are chronic diseases and one can be diagnosed with either at any age.

Now that we know different types of diabetes, let’s take a look at what are the main causes behind such conditions.

The Main Cause Of Diabetes

Diabetes, regardless of type, is caused by an excess of glucose circulating in your bloodstream.

1. Insulin Resistance: The Gatekeeper Goes On Strike

Imagine your cells as houses and glucose as the energy source (food) they need. Insulin acts like a key and lets glucose enter the cells and be used for energy. In type 2 diabetes, your body develops insulin resistance and this lock-and-key mechanism stops working. This means your cells become resistant to insulin’s message. So, even though there is a good amount of glucose in your blood, it can’t get into the cells. This causes an accumulation of glucose in your bloodstream, resulting in high blood sugar levels.

Factors that contribute to insulin resistance are:

• Excess weight: Fat, particularly visceral fat around your abdomen, may play a role in developing insulin resistance. Fat stored deep within your abdomen around organs is more metabolically active than regular fat and releases certain substances that affect insulin action.

• Physical inactivity: With regular exercise your muscles and other body parts utilize glucose properly which improves insulin sensitivity. On the other hand, being inactive or having a sedentary lifestyle reduces this ability.

• Diet: Regular consumption of a diet high in saturated and trans fats, processed carbohydrates, and sugary drinks causes blood sugar spikes, and forces your pancreas to constantly pump out insulin to keep things under control. Over time, your cells become used to this constant insulin barrage and become less sensitive to it.

• Genetics: Having a family history of type 2 diabetes also increases your risk. However, it’s not a guaranteed outcome and healthy lifestyle choices can mitigate the risk.

When your cells become resistant, your pancreas initially tries to compensate by producing more insulin. However, with time, its capacity may become overwhelmed, leading to a deficiency in insulin production. This further exacerbates the problem of high blood sugar.

2. Autoimmune Attack: The Body’s Betrayal

In type 1 diabetes, your body’s immune system, tasked with fighting off foreign particles,  mistakenly attacks the insulin-producing cells in your pancreas. This leaves your body with little to no insulin production and causes a critical deficiency.

The reason why this autoimmune reaction occurs is not yet known. But, doctors and researchers believe that genetic and environmental triggers play a role in this.

The Complex Interplay Between Causes of Diabetes

Though these are two main causes of diabetes, there are other potential triggers for both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes that make the picture more nuanced.

For example, some individuals with type 1 diabetes may not have a family history of the condition or it is not necessary their child will get the condition too. Your genes do set the stage, but it can’t be certain how it’ll all play out.

Similarly, a person with a healthy weight and active lifestyle may still develop type 2 diabetes, if a parent, grandparent, or other close relative has it.

Other causes like stress, pancreatic disease which affects its function and high blood pressure can also add up to cause diabetes mellitus.

Wrapping it up

Diabetes is a complex condition that is often a combination of multiple factors. Your environment, the foods you eat, the lifestyle you follow, your ethnic background—all matter. So, the best thing you can do to prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes is to change your lifestyle…lose those extra kilos, eat more fibre-dense foods and be more physically active. You can also include Ayurvedic products like Choles-terol Care Juice and Fat Reducer Juice in your routine for improved results.

Unfortunately, there is no known way to prevent type 1 diabetes but make sure to regularly see your doctor especially if any of your family members has it.

Stay safe, and stay healthy!