What is Diabetes Type 2?
Diabetes is the disease affecting the metabolism of glucose. Glucose is required by the body’s cells for energy production and normal functioning. This glucose comes in the blood from the food we eat and is carried to the cellular level by an important hormone known as insulin. Once the meal is consumed by the body, it breaks down into glucose and other nutrients which are then absorbed in the bloodstream from the gastrointestinal tract. This glucose is then transferred from the blood stream to the cells. Diabetes develops when the body either can’t prepare insulin or can’t respond to the insulin. Diabetes can be mainly differentiated into two broad categories such as Type 1 & Type 2.
Type 2 diabetes, formerly called non-insulin dependent diabetes, occurs as a result of the body’s inability to utilize insulin. It is the most common form of diabetes accounting for more than 90 % of diabetes cases.
How prevalent is Diabetes Type 2?
In 2013, estimated deaths due to diabetes were approximately 2 million. Epidemiology surveys have concluded that more than 80% of the deaths are from low and middle income countries. The World Health Organization has projected that diabetes can be the seventh leading cause of death globally by the end of 2020.
Factors responsible for Type 2 Diabetes.
Researchers have not yet been able to fully understand the underlying cause of diabetes 2. However, some factors are commonly found to be responsible for type 2 diabetes:
- Weight – Being overweight is the primary risk factor for being susceptible to diabetes. The more fat you have in your body, the more resistance develops for the use of insulin.
- Fat Distribution – If the fat is being stored in the belly region of the body the risk of developing diabetes is higher than that of storage of fat in the other parts.
- Inactivity –Low levels of physical activity result in susceptibility to diabetes.
- Family History – The risk associated with the disease increases with the family history of the person as there is strong genetic link up associated with the disease occurrence.
Apart from these stated above many other factors are known to be responsible for a higher incidence of Diabetes such as:
- Age
- Race/Ethnicity
- Prediabetes
Symptoms Associated with Type 2 Diabetes. - The signs and symptoms of Type 2 Diabetes can often develop slowly. In fact, for years it can go unnoticed, although some of the common symptoms can be taken as warning signals such as:
- Increased thirst
- Frequent urination
- Increased hunger
- Weight loss
- Fatigue
- Irritability and mood swings
- Weakness
- Blurred vision
- Vaginal yeast infection in females
- Darken areas of the skin
Prognosis associated with Type 2 Diabetes.
Diabetes can be diagnosed generally with blood tests for examining blood sugar levels at fasting and after meals. Apart from that many other examinations can help diagnose the problem at the early stage such as:
- Skin and bones of the feet and legs are brittle or get numb.
- Illness such as pneumonia
- Nausea or vomiting
- Mouth odor
What goes wrong in Type 2 Diabetes?
As against type 1 diabetes, patients with type 2 diabetes can produce insulin. However, the insulin cannot be utilized by the body for the metabolism of glucose. This may be because the insulin is either not sufficient or the body is unable to recognize insulin for its function. Thus, due to the body’s inability to transfer glucose to different cells, its accumulation in the blood stream increases. This causes the condition known as hyper glycaemia. Also since cells are not able to use glucose for energy generation, their function is severely halted.
How Stem Cells treatment can help.
Stem cells are the mother cells that are responsible for developing an entire human body from a tiny two-celled embryo. This is due to their unlimited divisions and strong power to differentiate into cells of different lineage. This power of stem cells has been harnessed by the technology to isolate them outside the human body, concentrate them in a clean environment and implant them back into the body.
Thus, stem cells treatment involves administration of concentrated cells in the targeted area, wherein they can colonize in the damaged area, adapt the properties of resident stem cells and initiate some of the lost functions that have been compromised by the disease or injury.
Various data is available suggesting in vitro differentiation of stem cells into insulin producing beta cells. These cells can as well help in creating a microenvironment to initiate secretion of different immune cells to counteract autoimmunity of the individual.
Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes at our Partner Clinics
Through our 16 years of research, we have mastered the technology for isolating the maximum number of viable stem cells from either the autologous source of the patient’s own body or allogeneic with a matched donor. Generally, these cells are administered through the below-mentioned methods depending upon the patient’s needs:
Local Administration: Through this mode, cells are infused directly at the targeted site.
Intravenous Administration: Through this mode, cells are infused through the veins along with the mannitol to expand blood volumes in the central nervous system, to ensure that the maximum number of cells are reaching the targeted area.
Once infused back into the body, these cells can be repopulated at the damaged parts of the pancreas, through their strong paracrine effects and differentiate into lost or damaged beta cells, initiate vasculogenesis and can as well initiate secretion of new immune cells.
Thus, although diabetes cannot be cured with the help of stem cells treatment t with our standardized treatment protocol, it can definitely be manageable.
