Do You Know Your Diabetes?

Diabetes is a disease in which blood glucose levels are above normal. Most of the food we eat is turned into glucose, or sugar, for our bodies to use for energy. The pancreas, an organ that lies near the stomach, makes a hormone called insulin to help glucose get into the cells of our bodies.

When you have diabetes, your body either doesn't make enough insulin or can't use its own insulin as well as it should. This causes sugar to build up in your blood.

Diabetes can cause serious health complications including heart disease, blindness, kidney failure, and lower-extremity amputations. Diabetes is the sixth leading cause of death in the United States.

For more information, see the National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse publication, Your Guide to Diabetes: Type 1 and Type 2.
Link to top of page What are the symptoms of diabetes?

People who think they might have diabetes must visit a physician for diagnosis. They might have SOME or NONE of the following symptoms:

* Frequent urination
* Excessive thirst
* Unexplained weight loss
* Extreme hunger
* Sudden vision changes
* Tingling or numbness in hands or feet
* Feeling very tired much of the time
* Very dry skin
* Sores that are slow to heal
* More infections than usual.

Nausea, vomiting, or stomach pains may accompany some of these symptoms in the abrupt onset of insulin-dependent diabetes, now called type 1 diabetes.
Link to top of page What are the types of diabetes?

Type 1 diabetes, which was previously called insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) or juvenile-onset diabetes, may account for 5% to 10% of all diagnosed cases of diabetes. Type 2 diabetes, which was previously called non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) or adult-onset diabetes, may account for about 90% to 95% of all diagnosed cases of diabetes. Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that only pregnant women get. If not treated, it can cause problems for mothers and babies. Gestational diabetes develops in 2% to 5% of all pregnancies but usually disappears when a pregnancy is over. Other specific types of diabetes resulting from specific genetic syndromes, surgery, drugs, malnutrition, infections, and other illnesses may account for 1% to 2% of all diagnosed cases of diabetes.
Link to top of page What are the risk factors for diabetes?

Risk factors for type 2 diabetes include older age, obesity, family history of diabetes, prior history of gestational diabetes, impaired glucose tolerance, physical inactivity, and race/ethnicity. African Americans, Hispanic/Latino Americans, American Indians, and some Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders are at particularly high risk for type 2 diabetes.

Risk factors are less well defined for type 1 diabetes than for type 2 diabetes, but autoimmune, genetic, and environmental factors are involved in developing this type of diabetes.

Gestational diabetes occurs more frequently in African Americans, Hispanic/Latino Americans, American Indians, and people with a family history of diabetes than in other groups. Obesity is also associated with higher risk. Women who have had gestational diabetes are at increased risk for later developing type 2 diabetes. In some studies, nearly 40% of women with a history of gestational diabetes developed diabetes in the future.

Other specific types of diabetes, which may account for 1% to 2% of all diagnosed cases, result from specific genetic syndromes, surgery, drugs, malnutrition, infections, and other illnesses.
Link to top of page What is the treatment for diabetes?

Healthy eating, physical activity, and insulin injections are the basic therapies for type 1 diabetes. The amount of insulin taken must be balanced with food intake and daily activities. Blood glucose levels must be closely monitored through frequent blood glucose testing.

Healthy eating, physical activity, and blood glucose testing are the basic therapies for type 2 diabetes. In addition, many people with type 2 diabetes require oral medication, insulin, or both to control their blood glucose levels.

People with diabetes must take responsibility for their day-to-day care, and keep blood glucose levels from going too low or too high.

People with diabetes should see a health care provider who will monitor their diabetes control and help them learn to manage their diabetes. In addition, people with diabetes may see endocrinologists, who may specialize in diabetes care; ophthalmologists for eye examinations; podiatrists for routine foot care; and dietitians and diabetes educators who teach the skills needed for daily diabetes management.

The Diabetes Overview fact sheet from the National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse has additional information
Link to top of page What causes type 1 diabetes?

The causes of type 1 diabetes appear to be much different than those for type 2 diabetes, though the exact mechanisms for developing both diseases are unknown. The appearance of type 1 diabetes is suspected to follow exposure to an "environmental trigger," such as an unidentified virus, stimulating an immune attack against the beta cells of the pancreas (that produce insulin) in some genetically predisposed people.

For more information about the immune system, visit these pages from The National Institute of Health’s (NIH) National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Web site:

* The Immune System

For more information on genetics and disease, visit:

* Genetics Home Reference
* NIH’s Human Genetics and Medical Research online exhibit
* The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Office of Genomics and Disease Prevention
* National Center for Biotechnology Information’s Human Genome Resources page

Link to top of page Can diabetes be prevented?

A number of studies have shown that regular physical activity can significantly reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes also appears to be associated with obesity.

Researchers are making progress in identifying the exact genetics and "triggers" that predispose some individuals to develop type 1 diabetes, but prevention remains elusive.

See the Preventing Diabetes section in these FAQs for more information.
Link to top of page Is there a cure for diabet
In response to the growing health burden of diabetes, the diabetes community has three choices: prevent diabetes; cure diabetes; and improve the quality of care of people with diabetes to prevent devastating complications. All three approaches are actively being pursued by the US Department of Health and Human Services.

Both the National Institutes of
Several approaches to "cure" diabetes are being pursued:

* Pancreas transplantation
* Islet cell transplantation (islet cells produce insulin)
* Artificial * Genetic manipulation (fat or muscle cells that don’t normally make insulin have a human insulin gene inserted — then these "pseudo" islet cells are transplanted into people with type 1 diabetes).

Each of these approaches still has a lot of challenges, such as preventing immune rejection; finding an adequate number of insulin cells; keeping cells alive; and others. But progress is being made in all areas.
Link to to
The CDC’s National Diabetes Fact Sheet

The National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse

MedlinePlus’s Diabetes Tutorial

The following organizations may help in your search for more information on diabetes:
Federal Governm
Department of Veterans Affairs
Internet http://www.va.gov/diabetes/

Health Resources and Services Administration
Internet http://www.hrsa.gov

Indian Health Service
Diabete 5300 Homestead Road NE, Albuquerque, NM 87110
505/248-4182
Internet http://www.ihs.gov/MedicalPrograms/Diabetes/index.asp

National Diabetes Education Progra Internet http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/ndep/index.htm

The NDEP is a nationwide
For more information on NDEP, call toll free 1-800-438-5383 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 1-800-438-5383 end_of_the_skype_highlighting.

National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
1 Information Way, Bethesda, MD 20892-3560
800/GET LEVEL (800/438-5383) or 301/654-3327
Internet http://www.niddk.nih.gov/

National Eye Institute (NEI)
Bldg. 31, Room 6A32
31 Center Drive, MSC 2510
Bethes 301/496-5248 or 800/869-2020 (to order materials)
301/402-1065 (fax)
Internet http://www.nei.nih.gov

Office of Minority US Department of Health and Human Services
P.O. Box 37337, Washington, DC 20013-7337
800/444-MHRC (444-6472)
Internet http://www.omhrc.gov/
Non-Federal Government Organizations

Links to non-Federal organizations found at this site are provided solely as a service to our users. These links do not constitute an endorsement of these organizations or their programs by
American Association of Diabetes Educators
100 West Monroe, 4th Floor, Chicago, IL 60603-1901
800/338-3633 for names of diabetes educators
312/424-2426 to order public Internet http://www.diabetes.org*

American Dietetic Association
National Center for Nutritio 216 West Jackson Boulevard, Suite 800, Chicago, IL 800/ 800/745-0775
Internet http://www.eatright.org/*

American Heart Association National Center
7272 Greenville Avenue, Dallas, TX 75231
214/373-6300
Internet http://www.americanheart.org/*

American Optometric Association
1505 Prince Street, Alexandria, VA 22314 800/262-3947 or 703/739-9200
Internet http://www.aoanet.org/*

American Podiat 9312 Old Georgetown Road
Bethesda, MD 20814
301/571-9200 or 800/ASK-APMA
301/530-2752 (fax)
Internet http://www.apma.org/*

International Diabetic Athletes Association
1647-B West Bethany Home Road, Phoenix, AZ 85015
800/898-IDAA or 602/433-2113
602/433-9331
Juvenile Diabetes Research Foun The Diabetes Research Foundation
120 Wall Street, 19th Floor, 800/JDF-CURE or 800/223-1138
212/785-9595 (fax)
Internet http://www.jdrf.org*
Medical Eye Care for the Nation's Disadvantaged Senior Citizens
The Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology
P.O. Box 429098, San Francisco, CA 94142-9098
800/222-EYES (222-3937)

National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse
1 Information Way, Bethesda MD 20892-3560
301/654-3327 (phone); 301/907-8906 (fax)
ndic@aerie.com (e-mail)
Internet Diabetes

 

1. Type 1: The pancreas produces no insulin . If you have type 1 you must take insulin through shots or via an insulin pump.
2. Type 2: The pancreas produces insufficient insulin. If you have type 2, you can control the disease with diet and exercise, or you may need to take some insulin.
3. Gestational diabetes: Some women develop high glucose levels during the later months of pregnancy, but it can often be managed with attention to a meal plan and regular physical activity.
4. Prediabetes: This term is used by some experts to describe glucose levels that are higher than normal, but not high enough to qualify for type 2 diabetes. If you have prediabetes, attention to diet and exercise may return your glucose to the normal range.

Get the help you need. Use our free clinician finder to locate a clinician in your area.