Any
one, even babies, can get diabetes. However, the most common form
of the disease, termed Non-Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus
(NIDDM), usually develops in middle age. No body knows exactly
why, for, strangely enough, many such patients have normal, even
elevated, levels of insulin in their blood. Perhaps, “their
Insulin is destroyed or chemically altered in some unknown way before
it reaches the tissues, so that the cells cannot respond normally
to it.”
The other form of the disease, Insulin Dependent Diabetes Mellitus
(IDDM), or Jovenile Diabetes, is rare. It is probably caused
by a viral infection of the Pancreas in children, which kills the
cells producing Insulin. Unfortunately, Juvenile Diabetes is usually
extremely severe.
Obesity increases the chances of getting Diabetes. “Besides
sugar utilization, Insulin is required for fat deposition in the
body.” “In obese people, an ‘Insulin steal’
occurs : the fat ‘steals’ the Insulin from other cells,
setting the stage for Diabetes.”
Heredity and Hyper tension too, plays an important part in
NIDDM. Those with close relatives suffering from the disease are
more likely to develop it. A
diabetic
couple’s children have a more than 25 per cent chance of contracting
NIDDM. |
