In the simplest terms, the causes of diabetic ketoacidosis are all boiled down to dehydration. If a person is experiencing insulin deficiency and high levels of blood sugar along with the organic acids referred to as ketones, the body’s own chemistry becomes severely disturbed. It occurs most often in people with type 1 diabetes, and in that group, people under the age of 25 are affected most.
Diabetic Ketoacidosis Causes
The causes of diabetic ketoacidosis are a little more involved than dehydration, however. When a person becomes dehydrated, a stress response is invoked that breaks down muscle, fat, and liver cells into glucose and fatty acids to use as energy. The breakdown is caused by hormones including glucagon, growth hormone, and adrenaline. The fatty acids are converted into ketones by oxidation. This whole process doesn’t happen in normal people upon dehydration because the hormones are stopped by insulin. But the causes of diabetic responses like this are due to the lack of insulin that defines diabetes. So, in essence, the body is consuming its own muscles, liver cells, and fat as a source of energy.
It’s the same as if a person is starving or fasting. Instead of using carbohydrates for fuel, the body’s fat is used instead. Increase in blood sugar levels results. The body dumps this excess sugar into the kidneys. Causes of diabetic dehydration are the frequent urination this brings about. In some cases, up to 10% of all body fluids are lost. With this fluid loss goes potassium and other electrolytes. The most common causes of diabetic ketoacidosis is missed insulin injections or the onset of diabetes where the patient is unaware of their diabetes because they haven’t been diagnosed yet. Some causes of diabetic ketoacidosis are not known (about 10%). It is dangerous because it is one of the causes of diabetic coma.
What Causes a Diabetic Coma?
Diabetic coma causes are basically prolonged periods of blood sugar extremes. Causes of diabetic coma can be either too low or too low blood sugar levels. But one thing is certain. Some diabetic comas can be fatal and it should always be treated as a life-threatening emergency.
Keeping your diabetes under control is the best way to avoid all of these complications. Medical supervision is encouraged, and along with your medical treatment you can start to incorporate alternative natural treatments into your lifestyle that will improve your overall health. Many organ failures and complications have diabetic causes and the better you can improve your overall body health, the less risk you put yourself at for causes of diabetic complications of all types.
