Health Advice
- Weight Management
- Quit Smoking
- Acne
- Child Health
- Pain
- Oral Care & Hygiene
- Aneurysm, abdominal aortic
- Tummy ache
- Abscess
- Periods, absent
- First aid
- Reflux
- Blackheads
- Acupuncture
- Gallbladder, inflammation
- Leukaemia, acute lymphoblastic
- Leukaemia, acute myeloid
- Addiction
- Addison's disease
- Adenoids and adenoidectomy
- Frozen shoulder
- Agoraphobia
- Air embolism
- Alcohol misuse
- Alcohol poisoning
- Alexander technique
- Rhinitis, allergic
- Indoor allergy
- Mountain sickness
- Alzheimer's disease
- Lazy eye
- Macular degeneration
- Memory loss
- Amniocentesis
- Amputation
- Motor neurone disease
- Steroid misuse
- Iron deficiency anaemia
- Vitamin B12 or folate deficiency anaemia
- Anaesthesia
- Anal fissure
- Brain aneurysm
- Angelman syndrome
- Anger management
- Angina
- Angioedema
- Arteriography
- Stent insertion
- Dog bites
- Fractured ankle
- Ankylosing spondylitis
- Anorexia nervosa
- Smell sense, loss of
- Antacid medicines
- Penicillin
- Anticoagulant medicines
- Antidepressants
- Antifungal medicines
- Antihistamines
- NSAIDs
- Antisocial personality disorder
- Hypochondria
- Anxiety disorders in children
- Stress
- Appendicitis
- Wrist, broken
- Arterial thrombosis
- Arthritis
- Asbestosis
- Asthma
- Astigmatism
- Eczema
- Atrial fibrillation
- Hearing tests
- Bird flu
- B12 vitamin deficiency
- Skin rashes in babies
- Weaning
- Lumbago (low back pain)
- Septic arthritis
- Halitosis (bad breath)
- Weight loss surgery
- Barium enema
- Bartholin's cyst
- Pressure ulcers
- Bedbugs
- Nocturnal enuresis
- Behçet’s disease
- Facial paralysis
- Tongue pain or soreness
- Prostate enlargement
- Beta-blockers
- Bicarbonate test
- Binge eating
- Biopsy
- Bipolar disorder
- Spider bite
- Eye, black
- Bladder cancer
- Cystitis
- Bladder stones
- Blisters
- Blood donation
- Blood gases test
- Blood groups
- Coughing up blood
- Semen, bloody
- Urine, blood in the
- Vomiting blood
- Septicaemia
- Hypertension
- Low blood pressure
- Blood tests
- Blood transfusion
- Blushing
- Bromhidrosis (body odour)
- Bone cyst
- DXA scan
- Bone marrow donation
- Stem cell transplant
- Borderline personality disorder
- Bottle feeding
- Botulism
- Rectal cancer
- Polyps, bowel
- Leaky gut syndrome
- Orthodontics
- Brain abscess
- Head injury, severe
- Brain tumour, benign (non-cancerous)
- Brain tumour, malignant (cancerous)
- Brain tumours
- Breast abscess
- Breast cancer
- Male breast cancer
- Screening for breast cancer
- Nipple discharge
- Mastitis
- Breast lump
- Breastfeeding
- Shortness of breath
- Osteoporosis
- Fractured collarbone
- Hip fracture
- Leg, broken
- Fractured nose
- Rib injuries
- Toe, broken
- Tooth, broken or knocked out
- Smelly feet (bromodosis)
- Bronchitis
- Teeth grinding
- Thyroid eye disease
- Bulimia
- Burns and scalds
- Heart bypass
- Caesarean section
- Food poisoning
- Cancer
- Thrush
- Thrush, men
- Thrush, oral - adults
- Thrush, oral - babies
- Carbon monoxide poisoning
- Cardiovascular disease
- Cartilage damage
- Nasal congestion
- Rib, cervical
- Smear test
- Sore lips
- Chemotherapy
- Chest infection, adult
- Chest pain
- Herpes zoster virus
- Statins
- Kidney disease, chronic
- Leukaemia, chronic lymphocytic
- Leukaemia, chronic myeloid
- Cirrhosis
- Claustrophobia
- Cluster headaches
- White coated tongue
- Gluten intolerance
- Herpes simplex virus
- Cold
- Colic
- Colostomy
- Coma
- Combined contraceptive pill
- Pneumonia
- CT scan
- Concussion
- Hole in the heart
- Heart failure
- Conjunctivitis
- Constipation
- Contact dermatitis
- Corns and calluses
- Coronary heart disease
- Vegetative state
- Topical corticosteroids
- Steroid medication
- Cosmetic surgery
- Cough
- Counselling
- Leg cramps
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- Swallowing pills (problems)
- Undescended testicles
- Lacerations
- Cystic fibrosis
- Psoriatic arthritis
- Dandruff
- Date rape drugs
- Thyroiditis
- Hearing impairment
- Dehydration
- Tooth abscess
- Teething
- Tooth decay
- Fluoride
- False teeth (dentures)
- Depression
- Dyspraxia in children
- Diabetes insipidus
- Diabetes
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- Diabetic retinopathy
- Dialysis
- Traveller's diarrhoea
- Nutrition
- Rectal examination
- Double vision
- Nummular eczema
- Shoulder dislocation
- Diverticular disease and diverticulitis
- Lightheadedness
- Down's syndrome
- Dry eye syndrome
- Thirst
- Dyslexia
- Periods, painful
- Indigestion
- Swallowing problems
- Dyspraxia (adults)
- Swimmer's ear
- Earache
- Earwax
- Eating disorders
- Ebola virus disease
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- Restless legs syndrome
- Endoscopy
- Threadworms
- Tennis elbow
- Epidural
- Epilepsy
- Watering eyes
- Nosebleed
- Impotence
- Tremor (essential)
- Ocular cancer
- Eye injuries
- Red eye
- Falls
- Family planning
- Fever, childhood
- Fibromyalgia
- Flat feet
- Wind
- Seasonal flu
- Nail patella syndrome
- Food allergy
- Foot pain
- Frostbite
- Gallstones
- Stomach removal surgery
- Gastroenteritis
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- General anaesthetic
- Genetics
- Herpes, genital
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- Gestational diabetes
- Gum disease
- Goitre
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- Recurrent limb pain in children
- Iron overload disorder
- Haemophilia
- Haemophilus influenzae type b
- Piles (haemorrhoids)
- Ingrown hairs
- Leukaemia, hairy cell
- Hallucinations
- Hamstring injury
- Hand pain
- Tendon repair, hand
- Hand, foot and mouth disease
- Hangover
- Seasonal allergic rhinitis
- Head and neck cancer
- Head injury, minor
- Nits
- Headaches
- Hearing and vision tests for children
- Myocardial infarction
- Heart block
- Palpitations
- Heart transplant
- Heart-lung transplant
- Heat exhaustion and heatstroke
- Sweat rash
- Periods, heavy
- Hepatitis A
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- Hepatitis
- Herbal medicines
- Hernia, femoral
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- Herpes simplex eye infections
- Hip pain in adults
- Hip replacement
- HIV and AIDS
- Welts
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- Homeopathy
- Hormone replacement therapy (HRT)
- Huntington's disease
- Rabies
- Hyperglycaemia
- Sweating, excessive (hyperhidrosis)
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- Sleepiness in the day (severe and unexplained)
- Thyroid, overactive
- Hypnotherapy
- Testosterone deficiency (hypogonadism)
- Underactive thyroid
- Irritable bowel syndrome
- Painkillers, ibuprofen
- Shoulder tendon, trapped
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- Inquest
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- Type 1 diabetes
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- knee-pain
- Knee replacement
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- Lung transplant
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- Rubeola
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- Multiple system atrophy
- Mumps
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- Selective mutism
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- Nose and sinus cancer
- Polyps, nose
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- Natural family planning
- Nausea and vomiting in pregnancy
- Peripheral neuropathy
- Night sweats
- Nightmares
- Rhinitis, non-allergic
- Type 2 diabetes
- Winter vomiting disease
- Obesity
- OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder)
- Sleep apnoea
- Occupational therapy
- Swollen ankles
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- Periods, irregular
- Organ donation
- Orthopaedics (orthopaedic surgery)
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- Paracetamol
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- Panic disorder
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- Ulcer, peptic
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- Periods
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- Whooping cough
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- Physiotherapy
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- Poisoning
- Reflux in babies
- Potassium test
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- Radiation
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- Rheumatic fever
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- Roundworm
- Seasonal affective disorder (SAD)
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- Salmonella infection
- Scabies
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- Sexual health clinics
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- Social anxiety disorder (social phobia)
- Vomiting in children and babies
- Sinus headache
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- Skin rashes in children
- Sleep paralysis
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- Spina bifida
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- Squint
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- Stye
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- Tuberculosis (TB)
- Tension-type headaches
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- Thyroid cancer
- Tics
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- Tongue-tie
- Tonsillitis
- Toothache
- Total iron-binding capacity (TIBC or transferrin) test
- Total protein test
- Tourette's syndrome
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- Traction
- Travel vaccines
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- Urinary tract infection, children
- Urinary tract infection
- Vaginitis
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- Vitamins, minerals and supplements
- Vomiting in adults
- Warfarin
- Weight loss (unexpected and unplanned)
- Whiplash
- Wisdom tooth removal
- X-ray
- Yellow fever
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Every parent’s heart sinks when they receive the dreaded note from school warning about head lice. Don’t worry – Jane Brennan from Brennan’s Life Pharmacy in Donabate is here to to give us advice and tips. The first thing to do is to check the child’s head. You will need some tea tree conditioner, a... Read more >
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Read moreNHS Choices - Causes of type 2 diabetes
(23/07/2014)
Type 2 diabetes occurs when the pancreas doesn't produce enough insulin to maintain a normal blood glucose level, or the body is unable to use the insulin that is produced – known as insulin resistance.
The pancreas (a large gland behind the stomach) produces the hormone insulin, which moves glucose from your blood into your cells, where it's converted into energy.
In type 2 diabetes, there are several reasons why the pancreas doesn't produce enough insulin.
Risk factors for type 2 diabetes
Four of the main risk factors for developing type 2 diabetes are:
- age – being over the age of 40 (over 25 for South Asian people)
- genetics – having a close relative with the condition (parent, brother or sister)
- weight – being overweight or obese
- ethnicity – being of South Asian, Chinese, African-Caribbean or black African origin (even if you were born in the UK)
See the introduction page for a full list of the risk factors for type 2 diabetes.
The four risk factors listed above are discussed in more detail below.
Age
Your risk of developing type 2 diabetes increases with age. This may be because people tend to gain weight and exercise less as they get older.
Maintaining a healthy weight by eating a healthy, balanced diet and exercising regularly are ways of preventing and managing diabetes.
White people over the age of 40 have an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. People of South Asian, Chinese, African-Caribbean and black African descent have an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes at a much earlier age.
However, despite increasing age being a risk factor for type 2 diabetes, over recent years younger people from all ethnic groups have been developing the condition.
It's also becoming more common for children, in some cases as young as seven, to develop type 2 diabetes.
Genetics
Genetics is one of the main risk factors for type 2 diabetes.
Your risk of developing the condition is increased if you have a close relative – such as a parent, brother or sister – who has the condition. The closer the relative, the greater the risk.
A child who has a parent with type 2 diabetes has about a one in three chance of also developing it (see below).
Being overweight or obese
You're more likely to develop type 2 diabetes if you're overweight or obese (with a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or more).
In particular, fat around your tummy (abdomen) increases your risk. This is because it releases chemicals that can upset the body's cardiovascular and metabolic systems.
This increases your risk of developing a number of serious conditions, including coronary heart disease, stroke and some types of cancer.
Measuring your waist is a quick way of assessing your diabetes risk. This is a measure of abdominal obesity, which is a particularly high-risk form of obesity.
Women have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes if their waist measures 80cm (31.5 inches) or more. Asian men with a waist size of 89cm (35 inches) or over have a higher risk, as do white or black men with a waist size of 94cm (37 inches) or over.
Use the BMI calculator to find out if you're a healthy weight for your height.
Exercising regularly and reducing your body weight by about 5% could reduce your risk of getting diabetes by more than 50%.
Read more about losing weight.
Ethnicity
People of South Asian, Chinese, African-Caribbean and black African are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes is up to six times more common in South Asian communities than in the general UK population, and it's three times more common among people of African and African-Caribbean origin.
People of South Asian and African-Caribbean origin also have an increased risk of developing complications of diabetes, such as heart disease, at a younger age than the rest of the population.
Other risks
Your risk of developing type 2 diabetes is also increased if your blood glucose level is higher than normal, but not yet high enough to be diagnosed with diabetes.
This is sometimes called "pre-diabetes" – doctors sometimes call it impaired fasting glycaemia (IFG) or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT).
Pre-diabetes can progress to type 2 diabetes if you don't take preventative steps, such as making lifestyle changes. These include eating healthily, losing weight (if you're overweight) and taking plenty of regular exercise.
Women who have had gestational diabetes during pregnancy also have a greater risk of developing diabetes in later life.