Type 2 diabetes - About the disease

Diabetes Type 2: A Lifelong Health Condition

Diabetes is a disease that affects blood glucose levels and the insulin hormone released by the pancreas. Diabetes forms 1 and 2 are the most common. Diabetes type 2 occurs when the pancreas is unable to develop insulin to stabilize blood glucose levels. Furthermore, the pancreas may produce insulin, but the patient’s cells fail to react to the insulin, resulting in the development of Diabetes type 2. Diabetes type 2 is most often associated with patients who are above the age of 40. Obesity is also linked to the disease. The research paper will focus on Diabetes type 2 condition, evaluating the existing methods that have been used in its management. The primary reason for choosing Diabetes type 2 as a topic of research is because it is a lifelong health condition and currently millions are ailing from the condition globally.

Negative and Positive Controversies

There are both negative and positive controversies surrounding Diabetes type 2 condition that has been advanced. One of the controversy developed is that smoking worsens the diabetic condition in patients with Diabetes type 2. A study carried by Chau et al. (2015) showed that most patients who had Diabetes type 2 and were smokers, quitted smoking due to advice from either healthcare providers or their family members. There is no direct connection between smoking and the level of blood glucose in the body; hence smoking cannot be categorized as a factor contributing to the worsening of the Diabetes type 2 condition (Chau et al., 2015).

The lifestyle of a patient is another source of controversy since some studies fail to recognize the function of changed lifestyle in the management of Diabetes type 2 condition. The lifestyle lived by a patient with Diabetes type 2 matters a lot in the management of the condition. Research carried out by Følling et al. (2016) revealed that availability of lifestyle intervention programs for Diabetes type 2 patients greatly increases the chances of stabilizing the condition. Having an active lifestyle for patients with Diabetes type 2 can assist them to manage the level of glucose in the blood, and therefore help in the management of the health condition (Følling et al., 2016).

Also, the issue of power dynamics and levels of trust amongst the health practitioners contributes in the management of Diabetes type 2 condition in healthcare facilities. Sometimes the level of trust between the patient and the healthcare provider is minimal, and this hinders implementation of management programs for Diabetes type 2 condition. McDonald, Jayasuriya, and Harris (2012) found out that at times the healthcare professionals experience shift in roles and function limits that affect their dispensation of services in managing health conditions such as Diabetes type 2 (McDonald et al., 2012).

Link to Overweight and Obesity

Overweight and obesity conditions are considerably linked with diabetes, where people with a Body Mass Index (BMI) greater or equal to 40 have a 95 percent confidence interval (CI) of being diagnosed with diabetes. Lifestyle intervention programs have been found to reduce the risk of developing Diabetes type 2 condition by 58 percent (Sylvia & Hu, 2016). Glycemic control has been recommended for management of Diabetes type 2 through weight loss. However, the method may be ineffective due to problems linked to diabetes such as neuropathy.

In Conclusion

Diabetes type 2 is a health condition surrounded with numerous controversies, but proper medication plans and lifestyle intervention programs are key in the management of the condition.

References

Chau, T. K., Fong, D. T., Chan, S. C., Wong, J. H., Li, W. C., Tan, K. B., & Lam, T. H. (2015). Misconceptions about smoking in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. A qualitative analysis, 2545-2553. doi:10.1111/jocn.12854

Følling, I. S., Solbjør, M., Midthjeli, K., Kulseng, B., & Helvik, A. (2016). Exploring lifestyle and risk in preventing type 2 diabetes. A nested qualitative study of older participants in a lifestyle intervention program (VEND-RISK)(161-9). doi:10.1186/s12889-016-3559-y

McDonald, J., Jayasuriya, R., & Harris, M. F. (2012). The influence of power dynamics and trust on multidisciplinary collaboration. a qualitative case study of type 2 diabetes mellitus, 11. Retrieved from http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6963/12/63.

Sylvia, H. L., & Hu, F. B. (2016). Contributors of the Nurse’s Health Studies to Uncovering Risk Factors for Type 2 Diabetes: Diet, Lifestyle, Biomarkers, and Genetics. American Journal of Public Health, 106(9), 1624-1630.