Pancreas Diseases

Hello everyone. Good morning from my end to you all in this educative community. I'm here for this contest about Pancreas Disease brought by @afzalqamar.

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Write about Pancreas Disease. What do you know about diseases of the pancreas?

In the back of your abdomen (belly), there is a large gland and it is also part of the digestive and endocrine system, it is called the pancreas. This pancreas aids in digestion and releases hormones to regulate blood sugar in the body. It is a supporting system to organs like; the liver, kidney and heart.

The pancreas consists of :

• The head (it sits in the curve of duodenum (wide)).

• Neck (the short part extending from the head).

• Body (the part between the head and the neck that extends up).

• Tail (it is located near the spleen (tiny)).

There are diseases of the pancreas but the main ones are; pancreatitis (acute and chronic), pancreatic cancer, type 1 and type 3C diabetes and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI).

Pancreatitis: this is the sudden inflammation of the pancreas, it can be severe or mild or life threatening. It can last for a long time too. It causes are alcohol abuse, certain medication, gallstones and genetic factors. It symptoms ranges from nausea, vomiting, fever, to severe abdominal pain.

Pancreatic cancer: this is a malignant tumor that forms in the pancreas. It's risk factors that can increase its risk are; obesity, diabetes, smoking and family history of it. This often has no early symptoms, do when symptoms appears it can be jaundice, abdominal pain, fatigue and weight loss.

Diabetes: Here, the bodies immune system attacks the insulin producing cells. It has symptoms such as excessive thirst, frequency urination, fatigue and unexplained weight loss.

Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI): There's malabsorption of nutrients due to the Pancreas not producing enough digestive enzymes. It is caused by cystic fibrosis, pancreatic cancer and chronic pancreatitis. Symptoms are weight loss, abdominal pain and diarrhea.

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Do you or someone in your family have an issue with your pancreas?

Neither me nor anyone in my family has an issue with pancreas that I am aware of. And there hasn't been any history about it in my family.

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How do we maintain our pancreas and avoid diseases?

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There are ways to maintain a pancreas to reduce the risk of pancreatic conditions and diseases. These few ways are;

• Regular exercise to maintain a healthy weight.

• Focusing on eating low fat foods.

• Limiting and watching your intake of alcohol.

• Putting a stop to smoking.

• Seeing your Healthcare provided to get checkups regularly.

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I would like to invite @josepha, @zory23 and @saintkelvin17 to join this contest.