19th Century Mystery: Type 2 Diabetes - Essay Sample

Introduction

Type 2 diabetes has adamantly dominated contemporary society. However, the condition was significantly rare in the 19th century when many clinical physicians linked the condition to over-eating and affluence. It is often referred to as non-insulin dependent diabetes since it is a condition whereby the pancreas produces some insulin which is either insufficient to accomplish the body's needs and requirement or it is resisted by the body cells, a resistance which often happens in liver, fat and muscle cells (Venkat, 2004) With the adamant investigation, clinical research established the close distinction between diabetes between thin and young people against middle-aged and overweight individuals. Diabetes was first identified as extreme emptying of the urine, which has been the major cause of kidney failure, non-traumatic amputations and blindness in the United States and closely associated with causes of stroke and heart diseases. Moreover, the essential discovery of insulin that was effective in the diagnosis of insulin was significantly ineffective in promoting the survival of the late-onset patient. Hence in 1970, a sufficient distinction between type 1 and type 2 was developed I association with the classified insulin sensitivity and insulin resistance diabetes (Weyer, 1999). Type 2 diabetes first appeared among individuals in the middle and high social class of the modern societies, steadily spreading down the social scale. As the living condition improved, the prevalent to attracting the condition grew with patients becoming more prone to the condition (Venkat, 2004). Improved living condition has been increasingly identified as a major cardiovascular risk factor. For instance, type two diabetes was adamantly viewed as limited in patients in the low social class who frequently faced starvation. However, the intervention has been criticized as discouraging patients from eating.

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Additionally, type 2 diabetes in the elderly population." People who have a history of diabetes in the family have a higher rate of progression of being exposed to type 2 diabetes. However, there are other numerous factors which might contribute to this cause, such as "glucose-induced insulin release" and "resistance to insulin-mediated glucose disposal" including one's way of living as well (Graydon et al. 2019). Numerous studies have also been conducted on middle-aged participants with type 2 diabetes. With it also comes to the "metabolic abnormalities," such as, "increased fasting," "hepatic glucose production," "altered glucose-induced insulin release," and marked resistance to "insulin-mediated glucose disposal." Studies have also shown that people who weigh less, have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes than do obese people. Studies also show that elderly people who are in shape with their body, participants happen to a relatively "normal glucose-induced insulin secretion (Graydon et al. 2019). Nevertheless, diet remained the major mainstream for treating the type 2 diabetes until the formulation and development of oral therapies and tolbutamide which were later extended to patients with asymptomatic hyperglycemia. Insulin induction was greatly considered as a significant method to control and manage glucose levels in patients with weight or older patient. However, as society becomes more advanced, clinical officers and patients have learned to manage the condition. For instance, according to the American Diabetes Association, today many children service diabetes unlike in 1940 when only less than half of the babies born of diabetes survived in America.

Type 2 diabetes is significantly common in America accounting for more than 95% diabetes cases in adults. Approximately 26 million Americans have recently been diagnosed with the Type 2 diabetes Over the past century; diabetes has increased 4-8 fold. It massively affects minority groups disproportionately (Weyer, 1999). For instance, since the condition is significantly associated with lower socioeconomic status, many individuals like the African Americans and Hispanics depict the greater risk of attacking Type 2 diabetes due to social factors like poverty income ratio, occupational status, and education among the minority groups. It is imperative that this epidemic be controlled as it causes heart disease, kidney, eye, and lower extremity disease. It is also the cause of metabolic dysfunction. People with diabetes have a 42% risk of becoming disabled, and death rates for those with diabetes is twice that of someone without. Moreover, according to the World Health Organization, as compared to women, the condition if prone among men are 85% as compared to the female counterparts (Bradley & Hsueh, 2016). Despite often being associated with obesity, clinical researches by America Psychological Association establish that socioeconomic status is more associated with type 2 diabetes prevalence among women, but not consistently among men. Therefore, the economic resources should be addressed in efforts to explain and reverse the increasing prevalence of diabetes in the United States

Difference Between Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes

Despite both type 1 and 2 diabetes occurring when the body is unable to store and utilize glucose, which may result in complications and adverse health consequences, they significantly differ from each other. Type 2 diabetes is often referred to as non-insulin dependent diabetes since it is a condition whereby the pancreas produces some insulin which is either insufficient to accomplish the body's needs and requirement or it is resisted by the body cells, a resistance which often happens in liver, fat and muscle cells. The Type two diabetes is prone among older individuals as its risk increases with age. On the contrary, Type 1 diabetes is frequently referred to as insulin-dependent diabetes or juvenile-onset diabetes due to its prevalent occurrences during childhood periods. It is an autoimmune condition established when the body attacks its pancreas with the antibodies. Unlike in type 2 diabetes, the insulin does not produce its insulin.

Risk Factors for Diabetes

Diabetes, according to the article, is predicted to affect 347 million people worldwide making it be 90-95% of the population. Cardiovascular disease is the primary reason leading to mortality in diabetic patients. Even though "coronary atherosclerosis" is in most cases the origin of heart failure in diabetic patients, diabetes-related cardiomyopathy happens to be the dominant original cause. Type 2 diabetes had been consistently linked with the improved lifestyle in many individuals which results in other vital conditions (Bradley & Hsueh, 2016). Despite hot having specific causes, the condition has often been linked with numerous genetic and environmental factors like being inactive and overweight which regretfully causes an increase in sugar level in the body. For instance, while obesity is largely associated with good and improved lifestyle, it is a major risk factor for the Type 2 diabetes.

Moreover, many individuals who are overweight have frequently been considered to be at the verge of contracting the condition due to their dietary schedules (Bradley & Hsueh, 2016). With obese individuals with more than 20% body weight over height are at high risk due to increase in insulin resistance facilitated by increased mass and fats in the body which gives the pancreas massive task of producing extra insulin that is frequently insufficient to maintain normal sugar levels. Additionally, inactivity also contributes to the high risk of type 2 obesity as it results in agglutination of glucose and increases on weight which makes the body cells more sensitive to insulin. Despite the race being considered as a major risk factor as the minority groups like African Americans, Indian Americans, Hispanics and Asian Americans prone to type 2 diabetes, it is unclear the reason for the increased risks. Moreover, age also increases the risks of developing the condition. As an individual gets older, he or she is prone to the disease.

Signs and Symptoms

Type 2 diabetes is characterized by frequent urination which results from the high sugar levels in the blood that forces the kidney to filter them out of the blood frequently (Venkat et al. 2004). Increased rate of urination among patients results in a lot of water loss in the body which may result in dehydration over time, thus making a diabetic individual to feel thirsty most of the time. Moreover, diabetic patients experience a deficiency in the absorption of glucose from the blood to the body cells, which deprives the body of enough energy making them feel hungry often. The low energy levels also lead to increased fatigue among patients. Softy and dark patches also appear on the groin, neck or armpits, a condition known as acanthosis nigricans. T2D is also associated with yeast infections among patients due to the high levels of sugar in urine and blood.

Complications

Type 2 diabetes is associated with a range of complications. Although at first the infection can be easily ignored as the patient may be feeling fine, type 2 diabetes affects the vital organs of a human body such as the blood vessels, kidney, eyes, and nerves (Lietzau et al. 2018). The complications appear gradually and if early treatment is not carried ou, they may be life-threatening. For instance, type 2 diabetes can increase the risk of high blood pressure, heart disease, and atherosclerosis. It is characterized by the proteinuria development resulting in the decline of the filtration rate of glomerular which takes 10 to 20 years (Forbes & Cooper, 2013). Untreated nephropathy may result in high blood pressure due to the high concentration of glucose which may result in the damage of blood vessels. The progression of nephropathy may also result in kidney failure. Diabetic nephropathy impairs toxin filtration from the blood to be excreted disabling vitamin D activation, hormone release such as erythro-protein, and maintenance of blood pressure through salt re-absorption and fluid balance. Changes experienced in the hemodynamics and the within the kidney are considered to be as a result of emission of vasoactive factors, alterations in the metabolic milieu, the changes in the signal transduction and intrinsic flaws in the glomerular arterioles associated with type 2 diabetes. The kidney also undergoes hypertrophy that is characterized by kidney enlargement.

Consequently, diabetic nephropathy has been the leading cause of renal failure among patients. Diabetic retinopathy which is accompanied by a variety of lesions within an individual's retina is the leading cause of blindness among diabetic patients between the age of 20 to 74 years (Gaede et al. 2008). Retinopathy is associated with changes in capillary microaneurysms, vascular permeability, neovascularization, and capillary degeneration. The neural retina also becomes dysfunctional as a result of the death of the various cells which alters the electrophysiology of the retina, thus impairing the ability of an individual to distinguish between colors. The degeneration of the retinal capillaries among patients of type II diabetes worsens prognosis resulting in ischemia that is followed with the emission of angiogenic factors associated with hypoxia. As this happens, the disease worsens and proceeds into the proliferative stage which is associated with visual impairment caused by the accumulation of fluid and neovascularization in the retina. Severe cases of type 2 diabetes are characterized by bleeding due to the damage caused to the retinal architecture such as the creation of fibrovascular membrane that detaches the retina (Forbes & Cooper, 2013).

In addition, neuropathy is common in more than half of the individuals with type 2 diabetes. Diabet...