The occurrence of diabetes of any type is due to the fact that glucose is not completely or partially absorbed in the human body, which entails a lot of unpleasant and sometimes irreversible consequences. Under normal conditions, the pancreas (PZH) automatically releases the hormone insulin into the bloodstream as soon as glucose appears in the blood, and the cells of the body use it to "absorb" the sugar. In diabetics, this process is disrupted for various reasons.
Type 1 diabetes
Typically, type 1 diabetes occurs in early childhood and adolescence. The pancreas stops producing insulin because the beta cells of the "Islets of Langerhans" in which it is produced, completely or partially die off. Sometimes clinical type 1 diabetes begins after severe viral infections, according to scientists, the fault of the immune system is to blame for this "failure".
Some dangerous viruses are very similar in structure to pancreatic beta cells, and the immune system destroys them along with alien viruses. It is impossible to restore insulin-producing cells, so for a diabetic, the only way to improve metabolism is lifelong control of blood sugar levels and timely administration of insulin.
Type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes usually develops in adulthood and old age. Very often, its occurrence is associated with obesity, although sometimes it also occurs with a hereditary predisposition, as well as after taking certain medications. Type 2 diabetes may develop on the background of chronic diseases of the pancreas or during pregnancy. Even if the pancreas of such patients produces enough insulin, it is slower than necessary. Therefore, the cells do not have time to use all the glucose, and its level rises.
The second reason for glycemia in type 2 diabetes is a decrease in tissue sensitivity to the hormone insulin. Doctors call this disorder "insulin resistance. "Simply put, they lack the normal amount of it, which is primarily associated with obesity.
Gestational diabetes
One type of type 2 diabetes is pregnancy diabetes, or gestational diabetes. The pancreas of a pregnant woman produces a normal amount of insulin, but the sensitivity of tissues to it is reduced due to the presence of "pregnancy hormones" in the blood. It usually occurs at 20-24 weeks and continues until childbirth, and after them, the metabolism improves by itself. However, sometimes, under the guise of gestational diabetes, DM 1 begins, and it also happens that against the background of pregnancy, DM 2 appears, the presence of which the woman did not suspect.