Diabetes mellitus
Diabetes is a chronic, metabolic disease characterized by elevated levels of blood glucose (or blood sugar), which may cause serious damage to the heart, blood vessels, eyes, kidneys and nerves. Glucose is vital to your health because it’s an important source of energy for the cells that make up your muscles and tissues. It’s also your brain’s main source of fuel.
About 422 million people worldwide have diabetes, the majority living in low-and middle-income countries, and 1.6 million deaths are directly attributed to diabetes each year.
The most common types of diabetes are type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes mellitus is one of the most common chronic diseases in childhood although it can appear at any age. It is caused by autoimmune destruction of the pancreatic beta cells, this leads to an absolute deficiency of insulin. People with type 1 diabetes need to take insulin every day to stay alive.
Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by variable degrees of insulin resistance, impaired insulin secretion, and excessive hepatic glucose production.it is strongly associated with obesity.
Gestational diabetes mellitus is a complex metabolic state that develops during pregnancy in women whose pancreatic function is insufficient to overcome the insulin resistance associated with the pregnant state. Every year, 2% to 10% of pregnancies in the United States are affected by gestational diabetes.