Why Is Diabetes Becoming More Common Than Ever?
Most of us only have a passing familiarity with diabetes as a condition related to the consumption and digestion of sugars, or the inability to do so. However, it is far more complicated than that and poses a serious threat on a global scale. According to recent findings, approximately 10% of the world’s population aged 20-79 suffers from diabetes, with projections indicating that 783 million will be diagnosed with the condition by 2045. Why is it becoming common now more than ever, and what can we do to dampen its rapid worldwide spread?
The Fundamentals of Diabetes
To understand how we can prevent it, we first need to learn more about diabetes. It is a chronic condition that makes a person unable to produce or use their own body’s insulin. This is why people suffering from diabetes refer to their medication as “taking insulin”.
By “taking insulin” daily, they add the much-needed insulin hormone to their bodies so that they can absorb sugar, also known as glucose, from the bloodstream. Without insulin, the body cannot absorb sugar, thus leading to severe, life-threatening reactions from individuals suffering from it but without access to insulin medication.
There are three types of diabetes:
- Type 1 is the condition in which the body is unable to produce any insulin. This is a severe form of diabetes that is commonly found in young children and rarely develops at a later stage.
- Type 2 is the condition in which the body produces insulin but is unable to properly utilize it, and needed additional medication for the process to work as intended. About 95% of all patients suffer from Type 2 diabetes.
- Gestational diabetes only appears in expectant mothers or women who are pregnant. Its symptoms are mild and the condition only appears during pregnancy, after which it either subsides completely or, on rare occasions, develops into Type 2.
This is an extremely dangerous condition that can cause life-threatening complications even if you’re fully diagnosed and have access to medication. Of the roughly 10% of adults worldwide, half continue to live undiagnosed, unbeknownst to the fact that they’re suffering from a dangerous health condition.
According to CDC data, about 96 million US citizens – more than 1 out of 3 people – have prediabetes, or are close to developing full-scale Type 2 diabetes or in extreme cases, experiencing heart diseases or strokes. What are the symptoms of this condition?
- constant tiredness
- surprising weight loss
- blurred vision
- unexplainable hunger
- increased thirst
- slow health of wounds/sores
While the condition is dangerous and is a serious threat on a global scale, its effects can be managed somewhat with the right approach to physical wellness cultivation. What can you do to avoid it, at least from a lifestyle perspective, sans any genetic predispositions you may or may not have?
Preventing Diabetes from Developing
The first step in preventing the condition from manifesting is to recognize what causes it in the first place. While a percentage of the world’s population has the aforementioned genetic predisposition toward diabetes, others can work to prevent it from manifesting. Some of the major risk factors which can lead to Type 2 diabetes include:
- increased weight and lack of physical activity
- increased blood pressure
- polycystic ovary syndrome
- the rampancy of gestational diabetes
To avoid diabetes as much as possible, you can do several things related to preventing the aforementioned risk factors from developing. By working on your Physical Wellness, you’ll not only be healthier yourself but you’ll also promote healthy living to those around you. Here’s what you can do:
- start exercising daily to increase your insulin sensitivity
- choose water instead of fizzy and sugary drinks
- work on losing excess weight if you have any
- reduce or eliminate smoking and alcohol
- eat less but more times a day
- take regular breaks when sitting for a long time
- increase your vitamin D intake
- eat fewer highly processed foods
- track your physical wellness with lunOcto
These tips will place you on the right path in terms of reducing the risks of diabetes manifesting in your body at a certain age. Moreover, these pieces of advice will make you feel good about yourself, especially as you complete your lunOcto Wellness Assessment Test periodically and notice positive changes in your overall wellness.
Living in a World with Diabetes
The risk factors associated with diabetes manifesting within any one of us are too common to be effectively combated on a larger scale. For the sake of argument, let’s take a look at some of those risk factors:
- excess weight
- lack of physical activity
- increased intake of sugars
- autoimmune disorders
- genetic predisposition
- pregnancy
- high blood pressure
Controlling all of these factors simultaneously is a full-time job. Not only that, but we are so exposed to processed foods that contain increased amounts of sugars that it is difficult to discern what “healthy eating” even means at this point.
Diabetes will continue to be the bane of modern society as long as we rely on cheap, fast alternatives to organic foods. However, with the socio-economic climate being what it is, affordable foods are not something we’ll be able to part with easily anytime soon.
Work on your physical wellness by adopting a healthier lifestyle, exercising more often, and eating more healthily. Raise awareness within your social circles and do your utmost to advise your friends and family on how to manage their wellness – it’s the best any of us can do at this point to combat the increasing worldwide spread of diabetes.
