Diabetes

If you haven’t heard of diabetes, then you must be living on another planet. Indeed, pick up any health magazine, or flick to the Health and Lifestyle section of your daily newspaper, and you are bound to read something new about diabetes. The level of attention and scientific research being conducted on diabetes is quite phenomenal. And the reason why there is so much focus on this condition is firstly because it is so serious, but secondly because it is one of the biggest health problems in the world today. More worryingly, the prevalence of diabetes is only growing.

In fact, the International Diabetes Federation has estimated that, at present, the number of people throughout the world that suffer from diabetes is something like 194 million. Moreover, according to the World Health Organization, by the year 2025 there will be more people across the globe living with diabetes as there currently are in the United States today.

With the rate of diabetes on the rapid increase, many people are asking the natural question: what is diabetes?

There are three main types of diabetes, Diabetes Type 1, Diabetes Type 2 and the lesser known and less common gestational diabetes. Diabetes 1 and 2 are the biggest concerns at the moment, especially Type 2 diabetes which is growing at alarming rates in highly developed countries.

Diabetes Type 1 is a condition that is typically diagnosed during childhood and is caused when the pancreas is unable to produce insulin. People suffering from diabetes type 1 have to regulate their insulin themselves, usually by injecting insulin.

Diabetes Type 2, which accounts for approximately 90% of all diabetes sufferers, affects mostly adults, and is sometimes called “adult onset diabetes”. It arises when the function of the pancreas is so compromised that it cannot produce enough insulin, or the body does not effectively employ the insulin that is being manufactured. Types 2 diabetes tends to go hand in hand with being overweight and having a poor diet or lifestyle.

Don’t become a statistic. Learn about diabetes now, and make the changes to ensure you don’t develop this problem yourself.

BBC Health: A guide to living with diabetes..