Survival of the Sickest: A Spoonful of Sugar Helps the Temperature go Down

This chapter of Survival of the Sickest discusses diabetes. Diabetes mellitus, happens when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin to regulate glucose levels in the blood. There are three types of diabetes. Type-1 or juvenile diabetes occurs in children and is normally treated with insulin injection or pump. Type-2 happens in adults and usually is treated by regulating food intake and exercise. The third type is gestational diabetes which occurs in pregnant women and is temporary for the period of pregnancy.  Type-2 diabetes are linked to bad eating habits and lack of exercise. Type- 1 diabetes is more attributed to hereditary causes which is linked to evolution of people of who originate from Northern Europe, who live in cold weather. In cold weather, higher glucose concentration in blood makes the body more resistant to the cold by dropping the freezing temperature. This was an adaptation that helped humans survive extreme cold weather.

Red circle=Type- 1

Blue circle =Type-2