Essay on Diabetes: Diabetes Mellitus and Blood Glucose Levels

Submitted By badio50
Words: 662
Pages: 3

Public Health emphasizes the importance of prevention and proactively taking care of one’s body. As people grow older, they must follow certain guidelines to ensure that they age healthily and successfully. One of the biggest concerns facing the aging population is chronic diseases. Chronic diseases are long term diseases pass certain symptomatic or diagnostic thresholds, they become a permanent aspect of an individual’s life because medical and personal regimes can sometimes control but can rarely cure them. One chronic condition that is a cause of concern is diabetes. Diabetes is not only one of the leading causes of death in the over 65 population, but also one of the most prevalent and debilitating conditions. Diabetes is a chronic disease or condition that involves the hormone insulin, which helps regulate the amount of glucose in a person’s bloodstream. When cells are in need of energy the pancreas produce insulin, this mechanism allows cells to absorb glucose from the bloodstream. If the pancreas produce too little or no insulin or if the insulin doesn’t work properly the person may become diabetic. Therefore, diabetics are not able to properly convert food into fuels needed by the body to function, which can seriously lead to physical consequences. To understand diabetes, it is important to first understand the normal process by which food is broken down and used by the body for energy. Several things happen when food is digested; a sugar called glucose enters the bloodstream. Glucose is a source of fuel for the body. An organ called pancreas makes insulin. The role of insulin is to move glucose from the bloodstream into muscle, fat, and liver cells, where it can be used as fuel. People with diabetes have high blood sugar because their body cannot move sugar into fat, liver and muscle cells to be stored for energy. This is because either their pancreas does not make enough insulin or their cells do not respond to insulin normally. There are two major types of diabetes. The causes and risk factors are different for each type. Type 1 diabetes can occur at any age, but it is most often diagnosed in children, teens, or young adults. In this disease, the body makes little or no insulin. Daily injections of insulin are needed. Types 2 diabetes makes up most diabetes cases. It most often occurs in adulthood but because of high obesity rates, teens and young adult are now being diagnosed with it. Many people with type 2 diabetes do not know they have it.
The peculiarities of Diabetes in the elderly
Presenting signs of Diabetes in the elderly are often quite different from those expected in younger