What is Diabetes?

What is diabetes?

Diabetes is a lifelong condition.
The cause is unknown.
Your body is not able to use food correctly for energy.
Diabetes affects almost every part of your body.
All types of diabetes are serious.

Diagnosis

Diabetes Arrows

Glucose

Glucose means sugar. Sometimes you will hear it called blood glucose, and sometimes it is called blood sugar. They both mean the same thing. Glucose comes from the food you eat. Your body gets its energy from glucose. Glucose is your body's fuel.

Insulin

Insulin is a hormone made in the pancreas. It helps the body use glucose for energy. Insulin lowers blood glucose by moving glucose out of the bloodstream into the cells of the body. You cannot live without insulin. When your body can't make enough insulin, you may need to take manufactured insulin by injection. This insulin, which is made in a lab, is chemically identical to that made by your pancreas.

If you have diabetes, you do not have enough insulin and/or your body does not use insulin the right way.

Type 1 diabetes

This was once called juvenile diabetes. In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas makes little or no insulin. People with type 1 diabetes must take insulin every day to live.

Type 2 diabetes

This was once called adult onset diabetes. In type 2 diabetes, the pancreas still makes some insulin. The body may not be able to use the insulin it makes, or it may not make enough insulin to keep the blood glucose in the normal range. People with type 2 may be able to control it with healthy eating and physical activity. They may also need to take pills or insulin or both.

Gestational diabetes

Seven percent of women have gestational diabetes during pregnancy. Gestational diabetes can often be treated with a healthy meal plan and physical activity, but some women do require insulin or pills. Blood glucose usually returns to normal levels after the baby is born. Women who have had gestational diabetes are a higher risk for type 2 diabetes later in life.

Pre-diabetes

With pre-diabetes, blood glucose levels are higher than normal, but they are not yet high enough to be considered diabetes. It is a warning that progression to full-blown diabetes is likely, unless steps are taken to prevent or delay its onset. Even at this stage, however, a healthy diet, weight loss and exercise may delay or prevent type 2 diabetes.