Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

Type 2 diabetes or noninsulin dependent diabetes represents about 90% of all diabetes cases and most frequently affects people after age of 40 but because of improper lifestyle it also more often affects younger people. In Type 2 diabetes the pancreas is still producing insulin sometimes even more than in healthy people but the body cells become insensitive or resistant to insulin what results high sugar levels in the blood like in Type 1 diabetes.

In contrary to Type 1 diabetes which practically occurs over night Type 2 diabetes develops much slowly and in some people can last for several years without any symptoms. Symptoms of Type 2 diabetes become more obvious when the cells cease to respond to the produced insulin. Thus in many people Type 2 diabetes is detected coincidently or when its symptoms become severe. According to the WHO almost half of all people are not aware they have diabetes.

The causes of Type 2 diabetes are not exactly known but according to the International Obesity Task Force and the WHO Health Report 2002 about 58% of diabetes is linked to overweight and obesity. In higher risk of diabetes are also people with strong family history of diabetes and women that had diabetes during pregnancy, while the WHO also reports that higher rates of Type 2 diabetes are in people of Asian and African origin, and in indigenous peoples of Americas and Australasia.

Type 2 diabetes is less severe form and does not require insulin injection but it requires treatment as well. If not treated Type 2 diabetes might severely damage the blood vessels, heart, brain, eyes, skin and kidneys, and eventually cause premature death. For that reason symptoms which may imply on diabetes should not be ignored and visit at a doctor not postponed. If detected and treated early one might improve his/her condition even without use of any anti-diabetes drugs.