The two major causes of diabetes is the body's malfunction to produce enough of the insulin hormone, and secondly the body develops a resistance to insulin.

&bullType 1 diabetes is caused due to decrease in insulin production.

&bullType 2 diabetes is caused due to resistance of insulin in peripheral tissues.

&bullIn juvenile diabetes, the cause might perhaps be a lack of vitamin D.

Causes of diabetes -

Diabetes mellitus occurs when the pancreas does not create adequate or any of the hormone insulin, or when the insulin produced does not work proficiently. Thus, this causes the level of glucose in the blood to be higher than standard levels

1. In Type 1 diabetes, the cells in the pancreas that are responsible to make insulin are attacked and destroyed by the body's own immune structure, causing a severe lack of insulin.

It is not exactly clear why this occurs, but probable triggers of this reaction could be -

&bullinfection with a specific virus or bacteria;

&bullexposure to food-borne chemical toxins or

However, these are only supposition, and are yet to be confirmed.

Type 1 diabetes generally develops in children, teenagers or young adults. Most of the doctors and scientists believe this is a genetically caused condition and is not related to lifestyle habits.

Risk factors for developing Type 1 Diabetes include:

1.Family history - a child that has a parent or sibling with type 1 diabetes has a 2-6% possibility of developing the disease.

2.Autoimmune disorders - such as thyroid disease and celiac disease, increases the danger of type 1 diabetes.

3.Early stoppage of breastfeeding and/or exposure to cow's milk - breastfeeding an infant for at least three months reducess the risk of type 1 diabetes. Some studies also show that exposure to cow's milk or cow's milk-based formula before one year of age may raise diabetes danger.

4.Ethnicity - Americans, Caucasians have a larger danger of type 1 diabetes as compared to African-Americans, Asian Americans, Latin Americans.

5.The past of childhood virus diseases

2. Type 2 diabetes is supposed to develop when:

&bullthe receptors on the human cells in the body that react to the action of insulin drop short of being stimulated by it - also called as insulin resistance. In response to this, more insulin may be developed, and this over-production exhausts the insulin-manufacturing cells in the pancreas;

&bullThere is just inadequate insulin available in the body and

&bullThe insulin that is available may be abnormal and therefore doesn't function correctly.

The following risk factors increase the chances of developing Type 2 diabetes:

&bullgrowing age

&bullif it runs in the family, i.e. genetic

&bullobesity

&bullhigh blood pressure

&bulldiet which is high in fat and low in fibre

&bullSedentary lifestyle with no or very less physical movement.

&bullAny illness or disease that damages the pancreas and affects its capability to create insulin e.g. pancreatitis (inflammation of the pancreas) and thyrotoxicosis (a poisonous situation that results from an overactive thyroid gland).

&bullHormone treatment, such as growth hormone, thyroid hormone and adrenocorticotropin hormone (ACTH).

What not causes Diabetes?

It is also essential to be alert of the various myths that have arisen about the causes of diabetes over time.

Eating sweets, excess sugar or the wrong kind of food (fried and fatty food) does not cause diabetes but this type of a diet may cause obesity, and overweight people are usually prone to developing Type 2 diabetes. So, it is not the food, but the effect of food that may cause diabetes. So, if you like eating and are a foodoholic, make sure to burn out the extra calories that go on to make the flab.

Stress is not responsible to cause diabetes, while it may be a cause for the body turning on itself as in the case of Type 1 diabetes. Stress, however does absolutely make the symptoms worse for those who already have diabetes.

People with diabetes should avoid sugar and sweets. Sugar and sweets increase the blood glucose, but people with diabetes can securely eat sugar as part of their meal plan.

Diabetes is not transmissible. A person with diabetes cannot spread it on to anyone else.