Diabetes

Diabetes mellitus, commonly referred to as diabetes, is a medical condition associated with abnormally high levels of glucose (or sugar) in the blood (hyperglycemia).
Glucose is a type of sugar found in certain foods such as honey and some, but not all, fruits. It is also the form of sugar that all sugary and starchy foods are converted to in the body after digestion. Glucose is used by the body to make energy.
Normally, blood glucose levels are tightly controlled by insulin, a chemical signaling substance (hormone) that is produced by a gland near your stomach called the pancreas.
Insulin lowers the blood glucose level because it stimulates the body to make use of glucose.

Types-

There are two main types of diabetes mellitus. These are known as type 1 and type 2.
Type 1 diabetes mellitus used to be called insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, or juvenile-onset diabetes mellitus, because it usually begins in childhood or adolescence.
In type 1 diabetes mellitus, the pancreas releases no insulin at all because the body has destroyed the cells that produce it (islet cells). The patient therefore relies on treatment with insulin.
Type 2 diabetes mellitus is the most common form of diabetes. It used to be called non-insulin dependent diabetes mellitus, or adult onset diabetes because it usually begins in adulthood.
In type 2 diabetes, patients can still produce insulin, but they do not produce enough and/or their bodies cannot use it properly.

Symptoms-

Symptoms of type 1 diabetes are often dramatic and come on very suddenly.
Type 1 diabetes is usually recognized in childhood or early adolescence, often in association with an illness (such as a virus) or injury.
1. The extra stress can cause diabetic ketoacidosis.
2. Symptoms of ketoacidosis include nausea and vomiting. Dehydration and often-serious disturbances in blood levels of potassium follow.
3. Without treatment, ketoacidosis can lead to coma and death.
4. Symptoms of type 2 diabetes are often subtle and may be attributed to aging or obesity.
5. A person may have type 2 diabetes for many years without knowing it.

Type 2 diabetes can be precipitated by steroids and stress.
1. If not properly treated, type 2 diabetes can lead to complications like blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, and nerve damage.
2. Common symptoms of both major types of diabetes
3.Fatigue: In diabetes, the body is inefficient and sometimes unable to use glucose for fuel. The body switches over to metabolizing fat, partially or completely, as a fuel source. This process requires the body to use more energy. The end result is feeling fatigued or constantly tired.

Unexplained weight loss: People with diabetes are unable to process many of the calories in the foods they eat. Thus, they may lose weight even though they eat an apparently appropriate or even excessive amount of food. Losing sugar and water in the urine and the accompanying dehydration also contributes to weight loss.

Excessive thirst (polydipsia): A person with diabetes develops high blood sugar levels. The body tries to counteract this by sending a signal to the brain to dilute the blood, which translates into thirst. The body encourages more water consumption to dilute the high blood sugar back to normal levels and to compensate for the water lost by excessive urination.

Excessive urination (polyuria): Another way the body tries to get rid of the extra sugar in the blood is to excrete it in the urine. This can also lead to dehydration because excreting the sugar carries a large amount of water out of the body along with it.

Excessive eating (polyphagia): If the body is able, it will secrete more insulin in order to try to deal with the excessive blood sugar levels. Also the body is resistant to the action of insulin in type 2 diabetes. One of the functions of insulin is to stimulate hunger. Therefore, higher insulin levels lead to increased hunger and eating. Despite increased caloric intake, the person may gain very little weight and may even lose weight.

Poor wound healing: High blood sugar levels prevent white blood cells, which are important in defending the body against bacteria and also in cleaning up dead tissue and cells, from functioning normally. When these cells do not function properly, wounds take much longer to heal and become infected more frequently. Also, long-standing diabetes is associated with thickening of blood vessels, which prevents good circulation and our body tissues from getting enough oxygen and other nutrients.

Infections: Certain infection syndromes, such as frequent yeast infections of the genitals, skin infections, and frequent urinary tract infections, may result from suppression of the immune system by diabetes and by the presence of glucose in the tissues, which allows bacteria to grow well. They can also be an indicator of poor blood sugar control in a person known to have diabetes.

Complications-

Diabetes can cause many complications.

1.Acute complications hypoglycemia, ketoacidosis or nonketotic hyperosmolar coma may occur if the disease is not adequately controlled.

2.Serious long-term complications include cardiovascular disease(doubled risk), chronic renal failure(diabetic nephropathy is the main cause of dialysis in developed world adults), retinal damage (which can lead to blindness and is the most significant cause of adult blindness in the non-elderly in the developed world), nerve damage(of several kinds), and microvascular damage, which may cause erectile dysfunction(impotence) and poor healing. Poor healing of wounds, particularly of the feet, can lead to gangrene which can require amputation? the leading cause of non-traumatic amputation in adults in the developed world.

Remedies-

1. Uranium nitrate. [Uran]
This remedy is praised highly by Hughes and others in diabetes originating in dyspepsia. It has polyuria, polydypsia, dryness of the mouth and skin. It causes sugar in the urine. Dr. Laning said that no remedy gives such universally good results; it lessens the sugar and quantity of the urine. It is when the disease is due to assimilative derangements that Uranium is the remedy, and symptoms such as defective digestion, languor, debility and much sugar in the urine, enormous appetite and thirst, yet the patient continues to emaciate.

2. Syzygium jambolanum [Syz Jam]

Syzygium jambolanum is a remedy capable of diminishing the amount of sugar in the urine, especially when used in the tincture and lower triturations, and some cases have been reported cured, but it cannot be considered a reliable drug, and its use seems entirely palliative.

3. Phosphoric acid [Phos Ac]
Phosphoric acid corresponds to diabetes of nervous origin; the urine is increased, perhaps milky in color and containing much sugar. It suits cases due to grief, worriment and anxiety, those who are indifferent and apathetic, poor in mental and physical force. It is unquestionably curative of diabetes mellitus in the early stages, great debility and bruised feeling in the muscles. There will be loss of appetite, sometimes unquenchable thirst and perhaps the patient will be troubled with boils. When patients pass large quantities of pale colorless urine or where there is much phosphatic deposit in the urine it is the remedy. It thus may be a remedy in the form known as diabetes insipidus.

4. Phosphorus. [Phos]
Useful in diabetes and pancreatic diseases, especially in those of a tuberculous or gouty diathesis. The pancreatic involvement will call attention to Phosphorus. Natrum sulphuricum corresponds to the hydrogenoid constitution, with dry mouth and throat, and Arsenicum should be studied in diabetic gangrene, thirst and emaciation. Sudden and extreme dryness of the mouth and marked physical restlessness are also guiding symptoms to this remedy, especially with a dark watery stool

5. Lactic acid. [Lact]

An exceedingly good remedy in the gastrohepatic variety of diabetes and good results often follow its use. It has a fine clinical record. The symptoms are: urinates copiously and freely, urine light yellow and saccharine, thirst, nausea, debility, voracious appetite and costive bowels. Dry skin, dry tongue, gastralgia. Acetic acid is also a valuable diabetic remedy, and it has passing of large quantities of pale urine, intense thirst, hot, dry skin and marked debility Carbolic acid may also be found useful.

6. Bryonia. [Bry]
Should not be neglected in this disease. No remedy has dryness of the lips as a symptom of hepatic disorder more marked than Bryonia, and this is often one of the first symptom of diabetes. There is a persistent bitter taste, the patient is languid, morose and dispirited, thirst may not be extreme nor the appetite voracious, may the patient lose strength through inability to eat.

7. Chionanthus [Chion]

Chionanthus is a remedy used by the Eclectic School upon the indications of thirst, frequent and copious urine; constipation with stools light colored, devoid of bile. Functional liver disorders. The urine is profuse, turbid and of sweet odor. Micturition is frequent and copious

8. Insulin. [Insulin]
Long before the discovery of Insulin Dr.Pierre Jousset of Paris prepared a pancreatic juice on a glycerine basis which he administered to diabetic patients in doses of 10 or 20 drops a day in water and had results sufficiently good to consider pancreatic juice, orally administered, as a remedy of great value in diabetes. Dr. Cartier, his practical successor, praised it insisted on smaller doses given by mouth as larger doses and hypodermic injections of it had no effect in ordinary diabetes.