Last Updated on October 22, 2020
This a disease that develops extremely slowly, so some of these early signs of diabetes may occur mildly at first, which may cause the patient to ignore them. At later stages, the symptoms become more severe, and patients can also develop yeast infections, acanthosis nigricans, foot pain, eye damage, heart disease, kidney damage, hearing impairment, sleep apnea, neuropathy, and even Alzheimer’s disease.
This condition used to be known as adult-onset diabetes. But since nowadays, more and more children are being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes – a consequence of the terrifying increase in childhood obesity rates – the health community decided to change its designation.
2. Type 2 diabetes causes
We already discussed the mechanism that causes type 2 diabetes. But why does the organism stop using insulin efficiently at one point? Well, as far as we know, that’s due to a combination of lifestyle and genetics. Type 2 diabetes risk factors include:
• Being overweight or obese: health experts agree that this is the main risk factor for type 2 diabetes by far. In this regard, fat in the abdomen region is also another differentiating factor. Men with a waist circumference above 40 inches and women with a waist circumference above 35 inches are at greater risk of suffering from this condition.
• Sedentary lifestyle: being physically active and healthy helps you prevent diabetes in three different ways. One, it keeps your weight under control. Two, it makes your body cells more sensitive to insulin and makes your body use glucose as energy (thus keeping your blood sugar levels in check).
• Lack of sleep: there’s no healthy lifestyle without great sleep quality. Some studies suggest that lack of sleep can lead to diabetes.
• Smoking: one more disease to add to the list of tobacco-related illnesses. Stop smoking right now. It’s never too late. Don’t forget that your doctor can help you.
• Family history: If any of your close relatives has type 2 diabetes, there’s a greater chance that you, too, will suffer from this condition – it is estimated that about 72% of diagnosed cases are inherited. In these situations, it is necessary to take extra care and actively work on its prevention. Tell your doctor about your family history so that he can carefully keep track of your blood sugar levels.
