A Brief Note On Genetes And Diabetes

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I. Introduction: Type two diabetes (dīəˈbētēz, -tis) is a disease that affects the way glucose, the body’s main source of fuel, is metabolized. With diabetes, the body will either resist insulin or will not create sufficient insulin to maintain a normal glucose level. About 25.8 million children and adults in the United States (8.3% of the population), 25.6 million (11.3% of people ages 20 and older) and 10.9 million (26.9% of people ages 65 and older) have diabetes. In 1889, Oskar Minkowski and Joseph von Mering discovered the role of the pancreas in diabetes. They created an experiment in which they found that dogs whose pancreas was removed acquired the symptoms of diabetes and died shortly after. In 1910, Edward Albert Sharpey-Schafer discovered that diabetes was caused by a deficiency of insulin. In 1921, Sir Frederick Grant Banting and Charles Herbert Best repeated the work of von Mering and Minkowski and went ahead to demonstrate that they could reverse induced diabetes in dogs by giving them an extract from the pancreatic islets of Langerhans of healthy dogs.¹ Well-known people with diabetes include Tom Hanks, Paula Deen, Halle Berry and Larry King. My great uncle and two great aunts on my father’s mother’s side are affected with this disease.
II. Current Information:
A. Symptoms: With diabetes, sugar builds up in the bloodstream which causes fluid to be pulled out from the tissue, causing increased thirst and frequent urination. Other symptoms include increased hunger, since the muscles and organs are depleted of energy caused by lack of insulin that put sugar in cells, and weight loss as a result of the usage of alternative fuels stored in muscle and fat since the body is unable to metabolize glucose. Diabetes also caus...

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...diabetes, it is important to monitor blood sugar so that it remains within target range. One can also use medications for diabetes which stimulate the pancreas to create and release more insulin, or slow insulin production and release glucose from the liver causing less of a necessity of insulin to transport sugar into cells. In addition to daily blood sugar monitoring, doctors may recommend regular A1C testing to measure your average blood sugar level for the past two to three months.⁵ A1C testing shows how well one’s diabetes treatment is working. Treatment also may include insulin therapy. Insulin is injected with a fine needle and syringe, insulin pen, or an insulin pump. Still others block the action of stomach or intestinal enzymes that break down carbohydrates or make your tissues more sensitive to insulin.⁶ Bariatric surgery also improves blood sugar levels.

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