Dr. Bhagodiya

You pass by that cake shop and happen to glance at a sumptuous chocolate cake, and then realization dawns on you that you are not allowed to eat simple sugar. Why? The answer to it is diabetes, for which you only have your pancreas to blame. Situated behind the stomach in your body, the pancreas is an organ whose role is to produce hormones and enzymes that aid in the digestive process. One of the hormones that the pancreas produces is insulin which is required by the body to metabolize sugar that is present in various foods.

So, if your pancreas does not produce the required amount of insulin or fails to utilize insulin effectively, it leads to accumulation of glucose in your blood. The improper functioning of the pancreas leads to diabetes. There are four types of diabetes and they are classified with respect to the manner in which the pancreas mal-functions:

1. Type 1 Diabetes: In this type, the immune system of the body wrongly attacks the insulin producing beta cells of the pancreas. This impairs the ability of the pancreas to secrete insulin, thus leading to Type 1 diabetes. However, even after extensive research in this field, the exact triggers haven’t been found yet.
2. Type 2 Diabetes: Type 2 Diabetes develops when the body becomes resistant to insulin. It can either mean that the pancreas is producing less than normal insulin or the body is not being able to utilize the produced insulin effectively. Factors such as a poor diet and lack of exercise increase the risks of Type 2 Diabetes.
3. Pre-diabetes: Pre-diabetes is a condition wherein the blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be considered as ‘diabetes’. It can again occur due to a reduced secretion of insulin or the inability of the body to utilize the insulin effectively.
4. Gestational Diabetes: This type of diabetes can develop only during pregnancy. This occurs primarily as the placenta, that connects the fetus with the body’s blood supply, produces hormones that impair the functioning of insulin. This type of diabetes can affect both the mother and the child.

Another common link
Pancreatitis is a condition that is marked by an inflammation of the pancreatic cells. This inflammation can damage the beta cells that produce insulin, thus resulting in diabetes. Factors that contribute to it are a poor diet, lack of exercise, presence of excessive calcium in the blood or excessive alcohol consumption.

How can you avoid the same?
It is best that you incorporate lifestyle changes if you have any of these disorders, and talk to your doctor about a treatment plan. Making a few simple lifestyle changes such as eating healthy, avoiding smoking and exercising on a regular basis can reduce the chances of you suffering from both diabetes and any other pancreatic problems. 

In case you have a concern or query you can always consult an expert & get answers to your questions!

Skin allergy is one of the most common complaints in the general population. While the skin has an overall protective function, it also comes in contact with multiple chemicals and substances including pollen, animal dander, environmental pollutants, various metals that might irritate the skin.

When the body comes in touch with any of these, it produces what is known as histamines. Excessive histamines can cause the liquid portion of the cells (plasma) to escape, causing swelling, redness, and itching. This can happen due to either of the two reasons:

• Contact dermatitis, wherein the skin comes in touch with an irritant. This could be animal dander, detergents, laundry products, soaps, etc.
• It could also be due to eating some allergy-inducing substances like eggs, chocolates, milk, peanuts, etc.

Most common causes of contact dermatitis are listed below:

• Metals like nickel, which are used extensively in artificial jewelry
• Latex which could be used in kitchen and bathroom gloves
• Toiletries including soaps, creams, lotions, scrubs
• Laundry and toilet cleaning products
• After the first contact, it could take up to a week to 10 days for the symptoms to manifest

Testing for allergy: It is not easy to pin down the exact cause of the allergic reaction. Skin tests are done usually by exclusion, wherein the most likely causative agents are tested to see if they produce an allergic response. Once detected, the patient is advised to avoid contact or use of that particular agent. Patch test is done where the suspected allergy-causing agent is applied on the skin to see if it indeed causes an allergic reaction.

Management: Skin allergies are treated by a combination of topical and systemic therapy, both immediate and long-term.

When an allergy has actually happened, then the following needs to be done?

1. Keep the area moisturized
2. Avoid itching
3. Apply a topical antihistamine agent
4. Keep it free of metal or any other objects
5. Avoid tight clothing, so that air circulation can help in healing
6. Oatmeal powder helps in getting rid of the itching
7. Use cool compresses to control the inflammation
8. Use calamine and hydrocortisone creams
9. Keep yourself hydrated
10. Take systemic antihistamine if required to bring down the allergy response
11. Once the causative agent is identified, it should be avoided.
12. It is not easy to identify the allergen, but keeping a dairy whenever there is an allergic reaction helps. Look back to see what products or chemicals you came in touch with or used recently and by excluding some, the cause can be identified.
13. If you are prone to skin allergies, always carry an antihistamine and also topical anti-allergy cream to manage the allergy. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can ask a free question.