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Can Eating Too Much Sugar Cause Type-2 Diabetes?

Can Eating Too Much Sugar Cause Type-2 Diabetes?
Can Eating Too Much Sugar Cause Type-2 Diabetes?

Can eating way too much sugar actually cause type-2 diabetes? The answer is..... read on to know!

Written by Satata Karmakar |Updated : May 18, 2022 10:57 AM IST

India is called the capital for diabetes, and there is a valid reason behind this. Data says, almost 1 out of every 11 individuals in India is living with diabetes (either Type-1 or Type-2). A report by the World Health Organisation (WHO) has revealed that one in six people (17%) in the world with diabetes is from India. To calculate the total number or the exact figure of the diabetics in India, we checked the available data at the government portal, and according to it, India has an estimated 77 million people (1 in 11 Indians) formally diagnosed with diabetes, which makes it the second most affected in the world, after China. And not just this, the country has also topped the list of fatalities associated with diabetes. Around 700,000 Indians died of diabetes, hyperglycemia, kidney disease or other complications of diabetes in 2020.

Why Indians Are Prone To Diabetes?

What is the reason for such a humungous number of diabetics in the country? Well, experts say that the blame goes to the environmental and the lifestyle changes that people in the country have been living with. Now, talking about Diabetes, what exactly is diabetes, also known as blood sugar.

Diabetes is a condition in which the body stops making enough insulin or is not able to use the available insulin as it should. Diabetes is chronic, which means is a long-lasting health condition that affects the function of the body where it turns the food into energy (important for it to perform regular/daily activities). Most of what we eat gets broken down into sugar (also known as glucose), which then gets released into the bloodstream. When the blood sugar levels go up, the body sends signals to the pancreas to release insulin, which acts as a key to letting the blood sugar in the body's cells for being used as a source of energy.

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In the case of diabetics, this complete process is missing. This means that when suffering from diabetes, your body either doesn't make enough insulin or can't use the insulin it makes as well as it should. When there isn't enough insulin or cells stop responding to insulin, too much blood sugar stays in your bloodstream. Over time, that can cause serious health problems, such as heart disease, vision loss, and kidney disease.

Can Eating Too Much Sugar Cause Diabetes?

Now, what everyone gets wrong is eating too much sugar can only lead to this condition. The answer is simple, but let's understand it first. What you eat, and what lifestyle you follow can obviously make you prone to suffer from diabetes but if you are someone who enjoys an excessive amount of the sweet stuff, it doesn't really the only contributor to diabetes.

In reality, it is carbohydrates, intaking too many carbohydrates can up your risk of diabetes. It increases the blood glucose levels in the body, thus, leading to Type 2 diabetes. And sugar is a carbohydrate, therefore, too much consumption of sugar can be one of the contributors to diabetes. However, there are many other food items as well, such as milk, cheese, yoghurt, pasta, rice, bread, fruit, potatoes, and other starchy vegetables. (Not to mention pies, cakes, doughnuts, candy bars, and potato chips.)