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Diabetes Mellitus: A disorder of carbohydrate metabolism resulting from insufficient production of insulin or reduced sensitivity of the body’s cells to insulin. * Etiology: Cause & Origin of * Type 1 DM: A condition in which the body is unable to produce insulin, a hormone that regulates blood sugar levels by facilitating the uptake of glucose into most cells in the body (mainly skeletal and adipoctyes). It is understood that this disorder is caused by the body’s beta cells of the islets of Langerhan’s in the pancreas to be destroyed, requiring the patient to inject insulin regularly, approximately three times a day. It is thought that genetics may have some role in the cause of this disorder considering that in runs in families. Another theory is that environmental factors, such as certain types of viral infections, lack of breast-feeding for at least three months, and the exposure to certain food additives such as nitrates and nitrosamines also contribute to the development of the disease. * Type 2 DM: A condition caused by inadequate pancreatic insulin secretion and tissue resistance to insulin. Mainly this type of DM is associated with a genetic link. Yet several other factors can play a significant role in the development of Type 2 DM such as: high blood pressure, high triglyceride (fat) levels, having diabetes while pregnant or giving birth to a child weighing more than nine pounds, a high fat diet, increased or prolonged alcohol intake, a sedentary lifestyle, being obese or overweight, and more. * Epidemiology: Incidence, distribution, and factors controlling presence Diabetes Mellitus affects approximately 7.8 to more than 10 million individuals in the United States population. Type 2 DM affects more people, about 90% of all 625,000 new reported cases each year, while Type 1 DM affects the other 10%. Although more than half of those with Type 2 will eventually require insulin to control their blood sugar levels. -Type 1 DM is usually recognized in childhood through puberty leading to its alternate name juvenile onset diabetes. It is more commonly found in people of non-Hispanic white, Northern European descent, followed by African Americans and Hispanic Americans and is relatively rare in those of Asian descent.
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