Diabetic 2017-12-22T12:41:43+00:00

Project Description


Glucose, or blood sugar, is a vital source of energy for the cells of your body. It is also the main fuel for the brain. However, the glucose in the blood should be of a certain quantity to keep the cells and the brain functioning optimally. Consistently high blood sugar leads to a group of disorders that disrupt the way your body uses glucose. Together, they are termed as Diabetes Milletus, commonly known as just Diabetes.

Diabetes can lead to serious health consequences. The growth of blood sugar is the direct cause of low insulin levels. The disease is broadly classified as Type 1 diabetes, Type 2 diabetes, gestational diabetes and prediabetes. Gestational diabetes occurs in some pregnant women, which may be resolved after birth. In prediabetes, sugar levels are higher than normal but have not reached diabetic levels.


The symptoms depend on how excessive is the sugar in your blood than normal. People with Type 2 diabetes or prediabetes may not manifest symptoms immediately. Symptoms associated with Type 1 diabetes and gestational diabetes are:

  • Frequent and acute hunger
  • Increased thirst
  • Sudden and unexplained weight loss
  • Frequent urination
  • Presence of ketones in urine (muscle and fat break down when there is not enough insulin creating a byproduct called ketones)
  • Blurred vision
  • Irritability
  • Frequent infections
  • Sores that do not heal normally
  • Fatigue
Type 1 diabetes
The exact causes of Type 1 diabetes are not known, but the disease sets in with the depletion of insulin. The immune system is known to fight harmful viruses, bacteria and other disease-causing germs. Due to some abnormalcy, the immune system attacks insulin producing cells in the pancreas. Without insulin, glucose is not supplied to your cells and builds up in the bloodstream.

Type 1 diabetes afflicts people of all ages but typically appears in childhood or adolescence. It is thought to be caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors, but they are not clear.

Type 2 and Prediabetes

In prediabetes, which leads to Type 2 diabetes, your cells become immune to the action of insulin. Normally, the pancreas responds by producing more insulin to overcome the resistance. However, sometimes the pancreas cannot cope. So again, instead of passing into the cells, where it is required to make energy, the sugar accumulates in the blood.

Like in Type 1 diabetes, the exact causes of these two types of the disease are also unclear. Again, genetic and environment factors seem to play a role. Obesity is strongly connected to the onset of Type 2 diabetes, but not everyone who develops the disease is overweight.
Gestational Diabetes

During pregnancy, the placenta produces certain hormones to sustain the developing child. Sometimes, these hormones make your cells resistant to insulin. When the pancreas cannot make enough insulin to break the immunity, glucose cannot get into the cells and remains in the blood. This causes gestational diabetes.

The process can reverse after childbirth, when the placenta ceases to produce the hormones that make the cells insulin-resistant.

Type 1 diabetes
Though the exact causes of Type 1 diabetes are unknown, factors that put a person at risk are, but not limited to, these:

  • Family History: People with either one parent or a sibling who have Type 2 diabetes are at risk of inheriting it.
  • Autoantibodies: An autoantibody is a type of protein produced by the immune system that attacks other proteins in the immune system. People who carry these antibodies are at increased to developing the disease. But not everyone who has autoantibodies becomes a diabetic. Still, family members of with Type 1 patients are tested for autoantibodies, since their presence puts them at increased risk for the disease.
  • Diet: Early exposure to cow’s milk or cow’s formula and cereals may lead to cause the development of Type 1 diabetes as the child grows. A low vitamin D diet can also precipitate the onset of the disease. However, none of factors have been directly linked to Type 1 diabetes.
  • Environmental Factors: These may include exposure to certain viral diseases and other external malevolent circumstances.
  • Geography: For reasons not clear, certain countries like Sweden and Finland have higher incidences of the disease.

Prediabetes and Type 2 Diabetes
Researchers are still struggling with the question why some people becomes pre-and Type 2 diabetics while others don’t. However, certain factors are known to increase the risk:

  • Being Overweight: As noted above, excess fat leads to the production of ketones and cells become resistant to insulin.
  • Inactivity: A sedentary lifestyle increases your risk of developing these types of diabetes. Physical strain cuts fat and builds muscle. It helps glucose convert to energy and make your cells more receptive to insulin.
  • Family History: People with a parent or sibling with Type 1, 2 or prediabetes are at greater risk.
  • Age: As you grow older one tends to get inactive, lose muscle mass and gain weight. This increases the risk of developing the disease. That said, Type 2 diabetes is alarmingly increasing among children, adolescents and young adults.
  • High Blood Pressure: Blood pressure above mercury levels of 140/90 millimetres is linked to increased risk for Type 2 diabetes.
  • Race: No one knows why, but people of certain ethic groups, like Negros, Hispanics, Asian-Americans and American-Indians are more susceptible to Type 2 diabetes.
  • Gestational Diabetes: Women who were diagnosed with gestational diabetes during pregnancy are at a higher risk of contracting prediabetes or Type 2 diabetes. If the baby was born weighing more than 9 pounds or 4 kilos, it also increases the risk.
  • Abnormal levels of cholesterol and triglycerides: Low levels of high-density lipoprotein, also called ‘good cholesterol’, increase the chances for Type 2. Triglycerides are a type of fat in the bloodstream. High levels of this substance are also a risk factor.
  • Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: This is a common condition in women, with attendant symptoms of irregular menstrual cycles, obesity and excessive hair growth. However, it puts such women at a greater risk for diabetes.

Gestational Diabetes
The following factors are responsible for increasing the chances of gestational diabetes in pregnant women:

  • Age: Pregnant women over 25 are at a higher risk of developing gestational diabetes.
  • Weight: If you were overweight at the time of pregnancy, it elevates your level of risk.
  • Prediabetes: A women who has prediabetes at the time of conception is more prone to gestational diabetes.
  • Family History: A parent or sibling with Type 2 diabetes increases your chances.
  • Earlier Pregnancies: The occurrence of gestational diabetes during a previous pregnancy increases the chances of it recurring during the current one. If you delivered a large baby or had a stillbirth in an earlier pregnancy, it also increases your risk.
  • Race: Negro, Hispanic, Asian-American American-Indian women, etc. are more likely to develop gestational diabetes as noted above.
Type 1 & 3 Diabetes

Prolonged diabetes can result in long-term complications, which manifest gradually. Also, the less-controlled your blood sugar levels over time, the higher are the chances of developing complications. These can be severely disabling and even life-threatening. Possible complications can be:

Cardiovascular Disorders: Diabetes puts the patient at higher risk of developing various heart diseases like coronary artery ailment and chest pain (angina), atherosclerosis or narrowing of the arteries. Diabetics are more likely to suffer heart disease or stroke.

Nerve Damage: Excess glucose can damage the walls of the blood vessels that feed your nerves, particularly in the legs. This may cause numbness, or a sensation of tingling, burning or pain. Starting at the tips of the toes or fingers, the sensation spreads across the limb. If not treated on time, the patient can lose all sense of feeling. Damage to nerves connected with digestion can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or constipation. It may also lead to erectile dysfunction in men.

Kidney Damage: The kidneys filter waste from the blood through millions of blood vessel clusters, called glomeruli, present in the organ. Diabetes can irreversibly harm this delicate filtering apparatus. Prolonged diabetes can lead to severe kidney damage like end-stage kidney failure, which may require a kidney transplant or long-term dialysis.

Eye Damage: A patient develops diabetic retinopathy when retinal blood vessels are damaged, a condition that can lead to blindness. Diabetes also precipitates the risk of other chronic vision defects like cataracts and the glaucoma.

Foot Damage: Apart from nerve damage in the foot, impeded blood flow in the leg cases can lead to cuts, blisters and chronic infections that take a long time to heal. If the conditions don’t respond to treatment, it may require amputation of the severely affected part.

Skin Ailments: Diabetes can make you more vulnerable to bacterial and fungal infections and other skin problems.

Hearing Impairment: Many diabetics go on to develop hearing problems.

Alzheimer’s: Poor blood sugar control in Type 2 diabetes is directly proportionate to the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

Though there are various theories how each complication may be connected to diabetes, none of them have been proved.

Gestational Diabetes

Women with gestational diabetes normally deliver healthy babies and the patient is cured of diabetes. However, if left untreated or if sugar levels remain high, it can cause complications in the baby like:

Bigger Baby: Excess glucose can penetrate the placenta trigger the unborn baby’s pancreas to make increase insulin production. This can cause the baby to grow too large (macrosomia) and may require a C-section delivery.

Low Blood Sugar: Babies of mothers with gestational diabetes sometimes develop low blood sugar (hypoglycemia shortly after birth. This is because their insulin production is raised. However, the sugar levels come to normal by feeding the baby on time. Sometimes, intravenous glucose may be given to the baby.

Type 2 Diabetes: Babies born of gestational diabetic mothers are at a higher risk of developing Type 2 diabetes as they grow and even after reaching adulthood.

Death: If the gestational diabetes is not treated and sugar levels remain high, it may result in a stillborn delivery or the baby may die shortly after birth.

The following complications can occur in gestational diabetic women:

Preeclampsia: This is a condition in which the mother may suffer from high protein content in the urine, high blood pressure and swelling of the limbs. If the condition is not reversed, preeclampsia can lead to life-threatening consequences for both mother and child.

Future Diabetes: Women who develop gestational pregnancy are more likely to have it in again in subsequent pregnancies. They’re also more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes in their lifetime.


Prediabetes has all the chances of developing into Type 2 diabetes if left untreated.

He healthy lifestyle choices are the only way to prevent prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes cannot be prevented, but a healthy lifestyle reduces the chances of its development.

Healthy Diet: Eat foods low in fats, carbohydrates and higher in protein and fiber. These foods constitute less calories. Think whole grains, fruits and vegetables.

Physical Activity: Cultivate a habit for some kind of exercise every day. You can take a brisk walk, ride a bicycle or go swimming. It is not necessary to have a long workout; you can break up physical activity in small sessions through the day.

Stay Fit: Being overweight increases your chances of developing diabetes. If you have excess weight, losing even 7 percent of the fat lowers your risk. To keep your body slim and fit, focus on a balanced diet and exercise. You can motivate yourself by keeping in mind the other benefits of staying fit: a healthy heart, more energy, better looks and self-esteem.

Sometimes, oral drugs like Metformin, Glucophage, Glumetza, etc. may reduce the chances of Type 2 diabetes. However, a healthy lifestyle is the mainstay for preventing diabetes. You can also have your blood sugar checked at least once a year to rule out Type 2 diabetes.

Sree Lakshmi Hospital was one of the earliest medical facilities in Bangalore to develop comprehensive diabetes management programs. Our team of experienced doctors is up-to-date with the latest advances in diagnosis and treatments of diabetes.

After initial consultation with a diabetologist and endocrinologist, each patient is subjected to a range of diagnostic assessments to evaluate how diabetes has affected his or her body. Treatment is augmented by dietary prescriptions and counseling on maintaining a healthy lifestyle.