Diabetes is one of the fastest growing maladies in the developed world. A UCLA study reports an increase of 26% between 2001 and 2007. Apart from longer life spans, which result in a rise in the number of cases of late onset diabetes, there are other factors at play.

The cost of treating diabetics in California is a staggering $24 billion annually. There are an estimated 26 million Americans afflicted with diabetes from which we can extrapolate a cost to our national health care system of $312 billion! Yes, billion with a “b”! The most significant aspect of this shocking state of affairs is that so many of the victims of diabetes are children. The rise in childhood obesity rates parallel the rise in childhood diabetes cases.

What are these factors and what can we do as individuals to reduce our risk? Let me first explain the two types of diabetes plaguing us today. Simply put, they are Type 1 and Type 2. Type 1 is characterized by the failure of the pancreas to produce insulin or insufficient insulin to control blood sugar levels. There is nothing we can do to prevent Type 1 diabetes at this time. If you have it, you are going to be taking insulin injections for the rest of your life. Happily, only 10% of all diabetics are Type 1.

Type 2 diabetes is different. The pancreas produces insulin but for reasons not completely understood, the body does not properly utilize the insulin to regulate the blood sugar (glucose). This is defined as insulin resistance and research suggests that it may be caused by high blood pressure, high blood triglyceride levels, gestational diabetes (giving birth to a baby weighing more than 9 pounds), high fat diets, high alcohol intake, sedentary lifestyle, obesity and advancing age. In any case, the pancreas secretes ever-larger doses of insulin to overcome the resistance. Eventually, the amount of insulin required is beyond the capability of the pancreas to produce, and you have Type 2 diabetes.

90% of diabetics are Type 2. This is good news. Why? There are many ways to reverse or at the very least control Type 2 diabetes.

Some of these include: maintaining a healthy weight to height ratio, eating a low-fat, high fiber diet, exercising regularly, quitting smoking, and taking proper care of any existing medical conditions.

It should be no surprise that the factor most associated with Type 2 diabetes is obesity. More than one-fifth (21.2%) of obese adults have diabetes. Compare that to 7.4% of people within normal weight range who are afflicted. Exercise is the second factor, but as I see it, lack of exercise and obesity go hand in hand. It is cause and effect and they are not independent causations. In other words, if you don’t exercise regularly, you get fat. If you get fat, you are 3 times more likely to suffer Type 2 diabetes than your counterpart of healthy weight.

If you get anything from this article, get this: Diabetes is costly, diabetes is on the increase, and your risk of acquiring it can be greatly reduced through maintaining a healthy diet and regular, vigorous exercise.

Author Bio: Winston P. McDonald enjoys writing for Uniformhaven.com which sells landau scrubs free shipping and baby phat scrubs as well as a host of additional products.

Category: Medical Business
Keywords: diabetes,cost risk of diabetes,cost of treating diabetes,diabetes risk