Diabetes

Introduction

Diabetes mellitus, or simply diabetes, is a group of metabolic pertinent disorders occur due to elevated blood glucose or hyperglycemia. It results because of insulin secretion problem or defects in insulin action, or sometimes, both. In diabetes, pancreas, a gland near stomach, either does not produce enough insulin or cells become resistible to insulin. Insulin is a hormone that converts our meal into sugar or glucose. This glucose provides the muscles and other tissue with energy and growth. Without insulin, the blood's glucose level cannot be controlled, resulting in buildup of excess sugar level or loss of fuel for the body.

Diabetes is one of the biggest health problems of the world. According to World Diabetes Foundation, in 2010, more than 285 million people live with diabetes and the number will grow to 437 million in 20 years. In the United States, diabetes is the seventh-leading cause of death and a significant risk factor for heart disease and stroke, the first- and third-leading causes of death respectively (National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse [NDIC], 2008). It is also the number one cause of renal failure, new cases of blindness, and non-traumatic amputations (NDIC). Currently, 7.8% of the US population is estimated to have diabetes, and recent projections suggest that by 2031, that figure will nearly double to 14.5% (Mainous et al., 2007). As healthcare expenditures for individuals with diabetes are approximately 2.3 times higher than for those without diabetes (NDIC), this increase in prevalence will exact a significant economic cost in addition to its impact on the health and quality of life of millions of people.

Numerous studies have sought to determine the optimal mechanisms for primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of diabetes and its complications. In the area of behavioral and educational interventions, meta-analyses have shown these approaches to produce moderate short-term improvements in glycemic control that decay significantly within three months of completing the intervention (Norris et al., pp. 1165). Among studies that followed participants for at least a year following the intervention, only two out of 12 found any significant effects. A consistent challenge in diabetes care is patients' adherence to recommended treatments, with non-adherence estimated at 32.5%, among the highest rate of any chronic disease (DiMatteo, pp. 204). Particularly after the introduction of intensive treatment for type 1 diabetes following the Diabetes Control and Complications Trial it has been suggested that treatment recommendations for this form of diabetes have become too complex to be practical in the real world (Hood, Peterson, Rohan & Drotar, 2009).

Brief History

The history of diabetes starts with a physician of 1552 BCE in Egypt, Hesy-Ra, who described frequent urination as a symptom of diabetes. However, no true understanding of this disease was developed until late 19th century. Cells in pancreas were first described in 1869 by a German student of medicine, Paul Langerhans. Later, it was discovered that these cells are the main source of insulin in the blood. The name is the cells were named after Langerhans as “Islets of Langerhans”. Later in 1889, Joseph Mering ...