Diabetes - Overview

Diabetes is becoming a leading health concern across the globe. It will not be an overstatement if we say that we all know at least one person who has succumbed to diabetes. A further cause for concern is the dramatic rise of diabetes among children and adolescents.

There are more than 194 million people (adult population) living with diabetes, worldwide.

Quick Facts

• Figures from the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) revealed that in 2015, there were over 1 million people living with diabetes in the UAE
• In type 1 diabetes, there is lack of insulin and in type 2 diabetes, your body does not use insulin properly.
• Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes, which accounts for about 90% diabetes across the globe.
• Overweight, obesity and physical inactivity are some of the risk factors for developing diabetes.
• Diabetes is associated with a number of complications such as blindness, amputation and kidney failure.
• Good news though; physical activity and a healthy diet can reduce the risk of diabetes.

Homeopathy emphasises on the holistic management of diabetes. Its aim is primarily focused on maintaining ‘normal’ levels of insulin, or keeping conventional anti-diabetic drugs at the minimum possible dosage, and in preventing the progression or complications of the disease.

What is diabetes?

Diabetes Mellitus (DM) or diabetes, as all of us know, is a disorder in which the body (particularly the islet cells in the pancreas) fails to secrete adequate insulin. It can also be attributed to the body’s decreased ability to utilise insulin.

In a healthy individual, food is digested to release glucose into the blood. This causes the pancreas to release insulin (a hormone) into the bloodstream. Insulin helps in the transportation of glucose from the blood into the cells so that it may be converted into energy. When the pancreas fails to produce adequate amounts of insulin, or if there is insulin resistance, glucose remains within the blood and the body cannot convert it into energy. This is what leads to the condition of diabetes.