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About Diabetes
What causes Diabetes
Do you have Diabetes?
Are you at risk for Diabetes?
Screening for Diabetes
Complications of Diabetes
Treating Diabetes
Are you at risk for diabetes?
There are still many unanswered questions about the
development of diabetes and why some people are more at risk
than others. Researchers agree that some lifestyle and other
factors do increase the likelihood that an individual will
develop diabetes.
Risk factors
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Weight
Fully 80% of people who develop Type 2 Diabetes are
overweight. Experts consider excess weight to be one of the
most prevalent risk factors associated with the disease. The
reason for this is because fatty tissue causes a resistance of
the body's cells to insulin. Not only is excess weight itself
a risk factor associated with the development of diabetes, but
how that excess weight is distributed across the body also
plays a role. Those individuals whose weight gain rests
largely in the abdominal area are at increased risk. One of
the first pieces of advice given to all those suffering from
high blood glucose levels is to lose weight.
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Genetics
Those individuals with a parent or sibling with diabetes are
more likely to develop the disease.
-
Inactive lifestyles
Those who exercise regularly are less likely to develop
diabetes. Not only does active living contribute to weight
loss, but it also uses the glucose present in the bloodstream.
Exercise also builds muscle, which is where the most
absorption of glucose occurs. Less muscle means that more
glucose stays in the bloodstream.
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Age
The frequency of the development of Type 2 Diabetes increases
with age, particularly after the age of 45. This is believed
to be the result of decreasing physical activity associated
with aging. For this reason, researchers are not surprised to
see the incidence of diabetes rising sharply in people in
their 30's, many more of whom live far less active lifestyles
than in the past.
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Ethnicity
Researchers are unclear as to why some races appear to be more
at risk for developing diabetes. The rate of diabetes is
double that of the general population for blacks and
Hispanics, and triple for American Indians. Type 1 Diabetes is
more common in Caucasians and some European countries.
Read more from the
National
Institute of Diabetes. For Americans living with
diabetes, the
American Diabetes Association offers useful information,
resources and support. |
