Metabolism and Diabetes

The metabolism is an important process that needs to occur for the body to function properly.  The body, more specifically, cells, are continuously carrying out these reactions by building and breaking down molecules for necessary cellular processes.  All these cellular processes create the metabolism.  Proper metabolism function allows for the body to be healthy and strong.  Without proper metabolism function, the cells will begin to have problems.  These abnormalities could lead to problems for the body like disease or even death.  Explained through Ayurveda, many seem to believe that the cause of disease is the lack of proper cellular function or because of the presence of toxins.  Ayurveda is perspective that can help individuals broaden their perspective when discussing things like disease and the human metabolism.

Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose levels are too high.  Your body is no longer able to utilize glucose and control the glucose levels, and too much glucose causes problems for the individual.  In terms of Ayurveda, your body’s balance was interrupted from the increase in glucose levels.  There are two different types of diabetes, Type 1, when the pancreas is not producing insulin and Type 2, when there is an insulin resistance in the body.  The two Types are different from each other from their onset to their prevalence although both affect the glucose levels in the body.

Something that I found interesting when researching metabolism and diabetes was that there are more concerns regarding individuals that have diabetes than just the biology of the disease.  It was interesting that the most common diseases that affected individuals was related to physical inactivity.  Physical inactivity has a very negative, dramatic effect on the body.  The economic cost that diabetes caused was very shocking and surprising.  In “Diabetes Beyond Biology”, it stated that the annual cost of caring for people with diabetes was about 2.3 times higher than other patients.  I was not aware that the cost was that much higher.  The commonness of diabetes also increases the impact of the higher cost. 

The purpose of the research titled, “Economic Cost of Diabetes in the U.S. in 2012” was to update any previous estimates of the cost of diagnosed diabetes cases in 2012.  They looked at diabetes prevalence, epidemiological data, health care cost, and economical data.  The study concluded that the estimated total economic cost of diagnosed diabetes in 2012 was $245 billion.  This was a 41% increase from their previous estimate.  This shows the burden that diabetes imposes on society, the economy, and the healthcare industry. Some other components of burden that were not included in the study could include, pain and suffering, like mental health, re-sources from care provided by nonpaid caregivers, and the burden associated with undiagnosed diabetes.  This research and study show that diabetes does have an impact not only on the biological health of the individual but on the economy as well.

When reading about diabetes and its side effects, I also found it interesting that people with chronic medical conditions have a higher risk of depression.  Through further research, the National Institute of Mental Health stated that this is because they may have difficulty adapting to their chronic illness and an increase in their medical costs.  They wrote about hoe illness-related anxiety and stress can trigger symptoms of depression in some individuals.  The increase in health-related problems caused by disease also shows the imbalance that Ayurveda strives to maintain.

In learning about diabetes and Ayurveda, diabetes could be described as the disorder in the individual’s metabolic pathway.  An individual with healthy glucose levels could be describes as having order within their metabolic system and order within the body as a whole.  When healthcare experts understand the nature and structure behind the disorder, like diabetes, order can be reestablished to the person with the chronic illness.