What is the Main Cause of Diabetes?

Diabetes is a chronic disease when our body cannot produce an adequate amount of insulin or when the produced insulin does not work sufficiently. Insulin is a hormone required in the body to effectively utilize the sugar that we consume; its lack thus causes deranged blood sugar levels in diabetes. When we say diabetes, we generally refer to type 2 diabetes, which is more common than type 1 diabetes. The risk factors for developing type 2 diabetes are; age more than 45 years, overweight, physical inactivity, family history of type 2 diabetes, and diabetes during pregnancy. On the other hand, in type 1 diabetes, which mostly occurs at a young age, our body’s own immune system destroys the insulin producing cells in pancreas. Its cause is unclear but has been related to genetics and triggers such as viral infections.

Reference:

WHO: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/diabetes#:~:text=Diabetes%20is%20a%20chronic%20disease,hormone%20that%20regulates%20blood%20sugar.

CDC: https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/basics/risk-factors.html

NIH: https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/diabetes/overview/symptoms-causes#:~:text=Type%201%20diabetes%20occurs%20when,that%20might%20trigger%20the%20disease.