It's called Type II diabetes, and yes, if it runs in your family, you are at risk, even if you're not clinically obese. Type II diabetes is a metabolism disorder where the body first has trouble utilizing insulin effectively and then in late stages, the body stops producing insulin in adequate levels. This is what cause high blood sugar level that in turn cause widespread celluar damage, resulting in a wide variety of secondary health problems. Type II diabetes hinges on several health factors, and weight is usually an additional symptom of those factors. Basically, what causes people to be overwieght are the same things that cause them to develop diabetes.
Diet and personal care are the most important factor, as these are things you can control effectively enough to prevent diabetes. Most recent studies show that in addition to hereditary factors, a diet low in dietary fiber as well as high in refined carbs (refined sugar white rice, refined flour, corn syrup), cholesterol and saturated fats increased one's chances of developing type II diabetes, even in people who are not overweight.
Dietary fiber block teh absorption of saturated fats and cholestrol and slows down the absorption of carbs in the GI tract. Fiber is essentially the first stage in our body's complex metabolism regime, so if you cut that out by eating a low fiber diet, you've already put your body at a serious disadvantage.
Refined carbs are too quickly digested int eh GI tract due to their lack of fiber (that's what "refined" means - it's carbs minus the fiber that naturally occurs with them). This causes a surge of sugar into the blood stream that stresses the metabolism response. The body overreacts, producing too much insulin, and over time the body become ovewhelmed by the overabundencec of insulin and fails to use it properly. This in called insulin resistence or "pre-diabetes." Most people with pre-diabetes aren't even aware they have it, as the symptoms of it are usually too mild to notice. During this stage, however, blood sugar levels are increasig on average, causing the primary damage that leads to full blown type II diabetes. Corn syrup may contribute ot diabetes in a two-fold way, as in addition to being a refined carb, it also can distrupt certain other metabolic enzymes that regulate our body metabolism and weight.
Saturated fats and cholesterol collect in blood vessels and around organs, and this stresses the body and decreases the organs' effectivity, especially the digestive organs, like the liver and pancreas, which regulate metabolism as well.
In addition to a poor diet and heredity, lack of physical acitivity also contributes to diabetes and poor dental hygiene is linked to it as well.
18 Dec 2007, 10:45 pm
