When the body cannot use glucose efficiently due to lack of the hormone insulin or because any insulin available may not be working effectively, diabetes occurs. The body converts all glucose from food into energy and this glucose is found readymade in sweet or starchy foods like cakes and pasta. The liver can also make its own glucose.

Under normal circumstances, insulin created in the pancreas regulates the amount of glucose in the bloodstream, but when the body starts not being able to regulate the glucose levels, diabetes occurs.

Diabetes is a condition that has been recognized for over 3,500 years. What is interesting is that for all the people that actually have the condition, there are nearly another 33% that number again who have the condition but do not know it. Three-quarters of all diabetes sufferers are classed as having type 2 diabetes, with the remainder having type 1 diabetes mellitus.

The difference between these two types of diabetes is that in type 1 the body is incapable of producing insulin whereas in type 2, not enough insulin is produced. As a rule, type 1 usually manifests itself in childhood or early adulthood and can be treated using insulin injections and diet control. Type 2 diabetes usually affects people as they grow older, normally after forty years of age.

Diabetes Symptoms

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) can be described as a functional disorder of the body’s gut. There are a few symptoms that could indicate IBS. Some of these include the following: discomfort or pain in the abdomen which tends to come and go but also seems to go away after passing stools; swelling or bloating of the abdomen with more than usual flatulence (passing wind); stools (or faeces) can differ from person to person. Some have diarrhea while some may have constipation, sometimes the stools are small and pellet like, while others they are watery or “ribbony”; nausea, headaches, loss of appetite, fatigue, backache and heartburn are all other symptoms.

The causes of IBS are not as yet very clear. Some doctors believe it has something to do with over-activity of one or many parts of the gut, and this over-activity could cause diarrhea or constipation. Over-activity could be caused by many things, including the nerves or muscles of the gut being overactive; intolerance to some foods; bacteria or infection in the gut; and, reaction to taking antibiotics.

IBS Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Treatments can include eating more fiber in the diet; eating a healthy diet while eating regular meals or avoiding not eating for long periods of time; drinking at least eight cups of non-caffeinated fluids each day while restricting coffee and tea to two or three cups per day.

Nearly everybody alive goes through a state of feeling sad, or what we normally call depressed, but this usually goes away after a time. Individuals that happen to have a depressive disorder, or what we know as clinical depression, tend to find that this interferes with their daily lives and routines.

Depression in Men

To give depression an official description, the MediLexicon’s Medical Dictionary states that: depression is “a mental state or chronic mental disorder characterized by feelings of sadness, loneliness, despair, low self-esteem, and self-reproach; accompanying signs include psychomotor retardation (or less frequently agitation), withdrawal from social contact, and vegetative states such as loss of appetite and insomnia.”

Depression in Women

There are many types of depressive disorders and these include dysthymic disorder, major depressive disorder, psychotic depression, postpartum depression (which is normally referred to as postnatal depression), SAD (seasonal affective disorder) and bipolar disorder.

The symptoms and signs of depression are not clear-cut at all. Some symptoms that may be experienced by some individuals may not be had by others. Also, the severity of the illness all depends on the individual concerned and the type of depression they may have. Nevertheless, common symptoms experienced by sufferers of depression include the feeling of pessimism, sadness or anxiety; feelings of hopelessness, restlessness and irritability; loss of interest in pursuits, activities and sex, among other things; fatigue, loss of concentration and disturbed sleep; aches and pains, change of eating habits and sometimes even suicidal thoughts.

Depression and Heart Diseases