One of the major symptoms of diabetes is increased thirst, which leads one to ask “What causes thirst in diabetes?” Thirst is our body’s natural response to a lack of fluid. This may happen because of high temperatures, exercise, or a response to the things that we eat.
Do you ever remember having a very sweet piece of cake or candy, and becoming extremely thirsty afterwards? This is because sugar particles deplete water from the body’s cells. When this happens chemical messages are sent to the brain indicating a need for excess fluids.
Similarly, when the brain senses that there is too much sugar in your blood stream, the body attempts to flush it out through our urine by using whatever bodily fluids available and may actually cause you to thirst for water. In response to this you urinate more frequently, and in turn, become thirsty again. This is mainly what causes thirst in diabetes.
What Causes Thirst in Diabetes: Diabetes Insipidus
An interesting, but rare, type of diabetes is diabetes insipidus (DI). Diabetes insipidus is characterized by an excessive thirst and large amounts of diluted urine. This is another example of what causes thirst in diabetes. According to Wikipedia.org, there are several types of diabetes insipidus, each with a different cause. These are:
Neurogenic DI
Neurogenic DI may also be referred to as central diabetes insipidus. This is due to a lack of arginine vasopressin (AVP) in the brain. Arginine vasopressin is a hormone which increases the volume of blood in our bodies and decreases the volume of urine produced. Therefore, a lack of this hormone causes an increase of urine production, which leads to dehydration and increased thirst.
Nephrogenic DI
Nephrogenic DI differs from neurogenic DI in that instead it is not caused by a lack of AVP, but by the inability of the kidneys to react to the hormone. This leads to an inability of the kidney to concentrate the urine by removing free water. It is often the result of some type of kidney defect such as polycystic kidney disease or an electrolyte imbalance.
Dipsogenic DI
Dipsogenic DI is the result of a defect or damage to our thirst mechanism. In this type, fluid intake suppresses AVP secretion and increases the output of urine. So, basically you have an increase in thirst, which can lead to a fluid overload. However, since the fluid is not being used it merely causes an increase in urination, and your thirst remains.
Gestational DI
This type of diabetes insidious is only is found during pregnancy. Vasopressinase is one of the hormones which women produce during pregnancy. In some women it is overproduced, causing an increased thirst. DI during pregnancy has been associated with some serious disorders in pregnancy such as pre-eclampsia, HELLP Syndrome, and acute fatty liver of pregnancy. Failure to properly treat these diseases can lead to maternal or perinatal mortality.
