Thursday, 14 March 2013

In everyday language, what is diabetes?


Having diabetes means the body makes little or no insulin and/or the body doesn’t properly use the insulin it makes. The body gets energy by converting carbohydrates into sugar (glucose). The body needs insulin to make the glucose.

Essentially...
No insulin = no glucose = no energy to the brain.

It’s complicated, but simply put:

Healthy Pancreas

Type 1 Diabetes – makes up 10% of cases
  • In most cases, you’re born with it
  • Pancreas makes little or no insulin
  • Occurs most often in children and young adults

Type 2 Diabetes – makes up 90% of cases
  • Impacted by genetics and lifestyle
  • Insulin resistance and/or pancreas not working properly
  • Occurs most often in adults


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