Cause of Type 2 Diabetes - Possible Factors

What is the cause of Type 2 diabetes?

Type 2 diabetes, also called non insulin dependant diabetes, affects approximately 90% of the individuals currently diagnosed with diabetes.

Unlike Type 1 diabetes, people with Type 2 do produce insulin; however, they have trouble either producing the insulin in sufficient quantities or using the insulin efficiently. For some, their pancreas fails to produce enough insulin, and in others the body fails to use the insulin produced effectively. Either way, this condition results in insulin resistance.

When insulin cannot be manufactured or processed properly, glucose (sugar) cannot enter the body’s cells to provide vital energy sources. In addition, as glucose builds up in the blood, the body’s cells cannot function properly. This leads to conditions like dehydration (hence the symptom of excessive thirst), diabetic coma, and damage to the body such as retinopathy or blindness caused by nerve damage to the eyes.

Diabetes can also affect the kidneys and heart, and cause a predisposition to atherosclerosis which can result in strokes or heart attacks.

So, what is the cause of Type 2 diabetes? In all likelihood, there is no one cause of Type 2 diabetes, and this condition occurs due to an interaction of a number of factors, and though it can occur in families, the exact hereditary mechanism and genetic factors that trigger onset remain unknown.

In a healthy person, the pancreas works to release insulin into the blood to help the body use and store sugars for cellular energy. Diabetes can occur when the pancreas fails to produce any insulin, produces too little insulin, or when the body develops insulin resistance.

Some genetic populations have predisposition towards developing diabetes, including African Americans, Pacific Islanders, and some Latinos. Those who smoke, drink excessive quantities of alcohol, lead sedentary lifestyles, or maintain ill advised diets can also develop diabetes.

Those at the highest risk include the overweight or obese, women who experienced gestational diabetes, those with a metabolic syndrome (like high cholesterol and high blood pressure), and the elderly, who naturally become less tolerant of sugars.

Abnormal HDL levels also cause diabetes. HDL , or “good cholesterol”, under 35 mg/dL (milligrams per deciliter) and / or a triglyceride level over 250 mg/dL creates a situation in which unhealthy cholesterol cannot be removed from the blood quickly enough, resulting in diabetes.

Are genes a cause of Type 2 diabetes? At the present moment, genetics continues to be intensely studied, as it appears to play an important role in determining Type 2 diabetes onset; in fact, some researchers believe it to be an even stronger link than in Type 1, yet less has been determined about the specific triggers.

Native Americans have the highest rate of Type 2 diabetes in the world, closely followed by Mexican Latinos who share Native American heritage. One promising genetic factor includes the prevalence of a protein called PC-1 that appears to shut down insulin receptors, leading to insulin resistance. The gene that bears responsibility for some types of obesity may also determine whether diabetes occurs. The so-called obese gene appears to regulate body weight by producing the proteins that signal the brain to trigger the hunger response.

How about the environment - is it also a cause of Type 2 diabetes? Indeed, environmental factors also play a large role, as demonstrated most clearly in children who have Type 2 diabetes. Up until recent decades, a child with Type 2 diabetes remained a rarity in medical literature, yet with the surge in the obesity epidemic, the incidence of Type 2 has skyrocketed. Many cases have been traced to lack of activity and poor dietary choices, such as excess intake of high caloric foods and drinks like fast food and sodas.

As mentioned earlier, there is unlikely to be one cause of Type 2 diabetes; as with all degenerative diseases, there is almost always a combination of factors at play.

The final diagnosis occurs when a medical provider first checks for abnormally high blood glucose levels during a random fasting blood test, or through a screening test. Some providers also look for ketone bodies or glucose in urine. By definition, diabetes means having a blood glucose level of 126 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) or more after an overnight fast.

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