Who All Are Affected By Diabetes?

Everyone knows that diabetes is an illness which has something to do with the sugar level in the bloodstream. But most people don't know what causes the sugar to rise or decrease in the bloodstream and what does that have to do with diabetes or its treatment.

Diabetes (diabetes mellitus) is the disorder of the body wherein it does not produce enough Insulin to regulate the breakdown of the blood sugar in the human body and it is normally categorized in two main and one subcategory– Type I, Type II diabetes and Gestational diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes is the most serious type of diabetes and is also called Juvenile Diabetes. It occurs because the human body's autoimmune system does not produce enough insulin to combat the foreign bodies entering the bloodstream. It is caused by genetic and environmental factors and affects 2 to 3 % of the diabetic population. Mostly kids and young adults are affected by it.

Type 2 diabetes is also called adult onset or non-insulin dependent diabetes and it is less serious of the two. It starts occurring when most of the muscles and other organs of the body stop utilizing insulin to breakdown sugar. It's caused by obesity and environmental factors and almost 95 % of the diabetic population suffers from it. It can affect anyone who has problems with insulin production.

Gestational diabetes only occurs in a small part of females during gestation (the time of giving birth). Though, its a temporary condition which mostly disappears after the pregnancy, the fetus has a high chance of having Type I diabetes later on in life. It affects 2 to 3 % of the diabetic population. But, the kids born to diabetic parents have a 20 to 25 % chances of having diabetes later-on in life.


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