Treatment For Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes | Diabetes-GuidesThere are two types of chronic diabetic conditions: type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Pregnant women may acquire a transient form of the disease called “gestational diabetes” which usually resolves after the birth of baby.
Pre-diabetes is when the blood sugar level is at the borderline: higher than normal, but lower than in diabetics. Prediabetes may or may not progress to diabetes. During food digestion, carbohydrates - or carb - break down into glucose which is carried by the bloodstream to various organs of the body.
Here, it is either consumed as an energy source - in muscles for example - or is stored for later use in the liver. Insulin is a hormone produced by beta cells of the pancreas and is necessary for glucose intake by target cells.
In other words, when insulin is deficient, muscle or liver cells are unable to use or store glucose, and as a result, glucose accumulates in the blood. In healthy people, beta cells of the pancreas produce insulin; insulin binds to its receptor on target cells and induces glucose intake.
Type 1 Diabetes Causes
In type 1 diabetes, beta cells of the pancreas are destroyed by the immune system by mistake. The reason why this happens is unclear, but genetic factors are believed to play a major role. Insulin production is reduced; less insulin binds to its receptor on target cells; less glucose is taken into the cells, more glucose stays in the blood.Type 1 is characterized by early onset, symptoms commonly start suddenly and before the age of 20. Type 1 diabetes is normally managed with insulin injection. Type 1 diabetics are therefore “insulin dependent”.
Type 1 Diabetes Treatment
Treatment for type 1 diabetes involves taking insulin, which needs to be injected through the skin into the fatty tissue below. The methods of injecting insulin include:- Syringes
- Insulin pens that use pre-filled cartridges and a fine needle
- Jet injectors that use high pressure air to send a spray of insulin through the skin
- Insulin pumps that dispense insulin through flexible tubing to a catheter under the skin of the abdomen
Type 2 Diabetes Causes
In type 2 diabetes, the pancreas produces enough insulin but something goes wrong either with receptor binding or insulin signaling inside the target cells. The cells are not responsive to insulin and therefore cannot import glucose; glucose stays in the blood.In other words, type 2 diabetics are “insulin resistant”. Here again, genetic factors predispose susceptibility to the disease, but it is believed that lifestyle plays a very important role in type 2. Typically, obesity, inactive lifestyle, and unhealthy diet are associated with higher risk of type 2 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes is characterized by adult onset; symptoms usually appear gradually and start after the age of 30. Type 2 diabetes accounts for about 80 to 90% of all diabetics. Management focuses on weight loss and includes a low-carb diet.
Type 2 Diabetes Treatment
There is no cure for diabetes. Type 2 diabetes can, however, be controlled with weight management, nutrition, and exercise. Unfortunately, type 2 diabetes tends to progress, and diabetes medications are often needed.Management of type 2 diabetes includes:
- Healthy eating
- Regular exercise
- Possibly, diabetes medication or insulin therapy
- Blood sugar monitoring
These steps will help keep your blood sugar level closer to normal, which can delay or prevent complications.
Some people who have type 2 diabetes can achieve their target blood sugar levels with diet and exercise alone, but many also need diabetes medications or insulin therapy. The decision about which medications are best depends on many factors, including your blood sugar level and any other health problems you have. Your doctor might even combine drugs from different classes to help you control your blood sugar in several different ways.
Gestational Diabetes
Gestational diabetes is diabetes that's triggered by pregnancy. (pregnancy, to some degree, leads to insulin resistance). It is often diagnosed in middle or late pregnancy. Because high blood sugar levels in a mother are circulated through the placenta to the baby, gestational diabetes must be controlled to protect the baby's growth and development.The reported rate of gestational diabetes is between 2% to 10% of pregnancies. Gestational diabetes usually resolves itself after pregnancy (National Institutes of Health). Having gestational diabetes does, however, put mothers at risk for developing type 2 diabetes later in life. Up to 10% of women with gestational diabetes develop type 2 diabetes. It can occur anywhere from a few weeks after delivery to months or years later.
With gestational diabetes, risks to the unborn baby are even greater than risks to the mother. Risks to the baby include abnormal weight gain before birth, breathing problems at birth, and higher obesity and diabetes risk later in life. Risks to the mother include needing a cesarean section due to an overly large baby, as well as damage to heart, kidney, nerves, and eye.
Treatment during pregnancy includes working closely with your health care team and:
- Careful meal planning to ensure adequate pregnancy nutrients without excess fat and calories
- Daily exercise
- Controlling pregnancy weight gain
- Taking diabetes insulin to control blood sugar levels if needed