What is diabetes and what types are there?
Diabetes mellitus is a chronic disease that is acquiring epidemic proportions worldwide, both in developed and underdeveloped countries. Roughly speaking there are 2 types of diabetes, juvenile or infantile diabetes, also called type 1 diabetes, which is treated with insulin and adult or type 2 diabetes which is treated with oral hypoglycemic agents, i.e. drugs that help the insulin hormone to act. In type 1 diabetes the treatment is insulin with diet, while in type 2 diabetics the treatment is based on oral hypoglycemic agents, i.e. drugs that modulate or adjust the insulin reserve to maintain regular blood glucose concentrations. In both cases it is essential to follow regular schedules and a balanced diet.
In the case of children, what signs can alert us to the presence of the disease?
In children, the main warning signs are unexplained weight loss, unusual tiredness and the need to drink and urinate a lot, as well as the presence of blurred vision. All or any of these symptoms should prompt the family to take their child to see their family physician or pediatrician promptly. These signs also occur in adults.
Can it be prevented?
In fact, it is known that diabetes, especially in adults, can and should be prevented by frequent physical activity and a moderate diet. The onset of diabetes is closely linked to overweight and obesity, so much so that there is a cause-effect relationship between the relative risk of developing diabetes and excess weight, therefore, using regression, if we lose weight we reduce the relative risk of becoming diabetic.
How important is diet?
In both type 1 and type 2 diabetes, diet is of paramount importance. It is impossible to control any type of diabetic without observing some minimum hygienic-dietary measures, i.e. schedules and amount of carbohydrate intake. Diet has a fundamental effect on the control of diabetes to the point that many diabetes are controlled only with diet, at least in the initial stages when we have a reserve of insulin that is sufficient to ensure control of blood sugar concentrations. Therefore by dieting and losing 10% of body weight most adult-onset diabetes is controlled within the first 6 months.