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What is diabetes?Diabetes mellitus (the full medical name) is a condition characterised by high levels of glucose (sugar) in the blood which the body cannot properly use and which is eventually excreted in the urine, along with a good deal of water. As glucose passes through the kidneys, it attracts water which results in frequent trips to the toilet to urinate and a feeling of Insulin is produced by the pancreas and acts as a key, allowing glucose into the body’s cells. Glucose is a vital source of energy for cells and is the main fuel for the body’s processes. It comes from digesting carbohydrates but is also partially produced by the liver. Carbohydrates are the main nutrients in healthy foods such as wholegrain or rye bread, wholegrain pasta, oats, brown rice, pulses (beans, peas and lentils) and sweet potatoes. They are also in not-sohealthy foods such as white bread, white pasta, cakes, sweets and other sugary foods. If the body cannot use glucose as a source of energy it uses fat instead, but this inevitably disturbs the biochemical balance of the body and can lead to further health complications. When glucose is prevented from entering the body’s cells, they are denied their basic and most important fuel. This can result in tiredness, which is one of the symptoms of diabetes. Other symptoms are irritability, nausea, hunger, thirst, weight loss, blurred vision, tingling sensations in the hands and feet and dry, itchy skin. In 1985, about 30 million people worldwide had diabetes of both types; a decade later this figure had increased to 135 million and by 2000 an estimated 171 million people had the disease. It is predicted that at least 366 million people will have diabetes by 2030 (Wild et al., 2004). This increase is attributed to a range of factors, including population growth, ageing, unhealthy diets high in saturated fat and cholesterol, obesity and lack of physical exercise. In the UK alone, 2.8 million people have been diagnosed with diabetes (Diabetes UK, 2010a), while an estimated half a million more have it but have not been diagnosed yet (Diabetes UK, 2010b).
In 2008 alone, 145,000 people were diagnosed with diabetes in the UK – around 400 people every day. According to the latest numbers, it is expected that by 2025 over four million people in the UK will have diabetes. Because of rapid increases in numbers of overweight and obese people, and also because the British population is ageing, most of these cases will In 2011, 85 percent of adult UK citizens with diabetes have type 2 and 15 per cent type 1 (Diabetes UK, 2010b). Currently, there are two WHO (World Health Organisation) criteria for diagnosing diabetes. One is a test for blood glucose level after fasting – plasma glucose higher than 7.0mmol/l (126mg/dl) indicates diabetes. The other is a test for plasma glucose levels two hours after ingesting a special glucose drink – in this test plasma glucose level higher than 11.1mmol/l Another criterion to be considered is glycosylated hemoglobin HbA1c, reflecting the average level of blood glucose over a period of weeks. Haemoglobin molecules are one of the main components of red blood cells and when glucose binds to haemoglobin in the bloodstream, HbA1c (glycoslated haemoglobin molecule) occurs. The more glucose in the blood, the
HbA1c & Glucose Blood Levels (Diabetes.co.uk):
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