Causes of Diabetes – Symptoms, Treatment & Types of Diabetes

For those of us who have a family history of diabetes, it can really start to stress us out wondering exactly are the causes of diabetes.  After all, are you guaranteed to get it simply because it runs in your family, or is there more to it than that?

The good news is that you’re not guaranteed to get diabetes simply because it runs in your family.  Though it does raise your chances slightly, only about 5% of those that suffer from type one diabetes actually have a family history of it.

If you’re wondering exactly what your odds are, the chances of someone with a family history developing diabetes is about 25%, not taking other risk factors into account.  So what exactly are the causes of diabetes?

Causes of Diabetes and Who Is At Risk:

There are 3 main types of diabetes – Type 1, Type 2 and Gestational diabetes. Each of the type may have a different reason behind it. By going through different articles on our website, you may be able to know the symptoms and causes of the different types of diabetes.

Unfortunately, most of what causes diabetes remains a medical mystery.  Scientists just haven’t been able to determine exactly what causes the disease in some people, but not others.  In fact, there are some cases where there are identical twins and only one child has the disorder.

While they have not been able to determine exactly what the causes of diabetes are, there are several risk factors that, if you take the steps to control, can help drastically lower your chances of getting diabetes.
One of the first steps that you should take is to try to avoid obesity as much as possible.  Especially if you’re over age 45, being obese may skyrocket your chances of developing diabetes.  This is because excess fat makes it difficult for the insulin to work properly, and actually causes your body to develop a small resistance to insulin.  This also results in the body needing extra insulin, which is a so many people suffering from type two diabetes need insulin shots.

Once you have your weight under control, you should start working on your diet.  By changing your diet to reduce intake of the simple carbohydrates, more commonly called simple sugars, you reduce your chances of obesity; which in turn reduces your chances of developing diabetes.  But even though there are dozens of rules to learn to maintain a healthy diet, most of them are common sense.

Try to avoid high sodium processed foods, and also try to eat leaner cuts of meat as opposed to fattier cuts of meat.  Obviously, the more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains you can be on a regular basis, the better. Another huge risk factor that a lot of people don’t realize is smoking.  There has been a very strong link proven between smoking regularly and increasing your risk of developing diabetes.

This risk, like obesity, increases as you get older.  Again, over age 40, it becomes a very dangerous risk factor, and you should stop smoking if you start to have any blood sugar problems.  If you do develop diabetes, smoking might become a cause in accelerating some of the problems caused by the disease, so make sure that you quit smoking and try to avoid secondhand smoke if you develop any insulin or blood sugar problems at all.

Even though scientists don’t fully yet understand what all of the causes of diabetes are, by limiting as many risk factors as possible you greatly decrease your chance of developing this debilitating disease.  Though it seems like a lot, if you take each change one step at a time, you’ll not only reduce your risk of developing diabetes, but you’ll also feel much better.

Just remember to stay is healthy as you can buy making healthy choices, and check in with your doctor regularly if you think that you’re having blood sugar, glucose, or insulin problems.