The Diabetes Basics
Date: 06/27/19
More than 30 million Americans have diabetes.
Do you know the basics about this disease? Type 2 diabetes is the most common form. In this form, your body does not use insulin properly.
Your pancreas tries to make extra insulin to make up for this. But your pancreas can’t make enough. That means you no longer have a normal blood glucose level. Glucose builds up in your blood instead of going into cells.
That can cause two problems. Right away, your cells start losing energy. It also may hurt your eyes, kidneys, nerves or heart over time.
You can treat type 2 a few different ways:
- Diet changes and exercise
- Pills
- Insulin
Some people with type 2 can manage their health by eating well and being active. Your doctor may also prescribe pills or insulin. Both can help you meet your target blood glucose levels. Type 2 usually gets worse over time. That means even if you don’t need medication at first, you may need pills later on.
Some groups have a higher risk for developing type 2 diabetes than others:
- African Americans
- Latinos
- Native Americans
- Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders
- Aged population
Before people develop type 2, they almost always have “prediabetes.” This means their blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not yet high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes. This is sometimes known as Impaired Glucose Tolerance (IGT). It may also be called Impaired Fasting Glucose (IFG).
This condition puts you more at risk for developing type 2 diabetes. It also means you are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease. But you will not automatically develop type 2 if you have prediabetes. Early treatment can help some people’s blood glucose levels get back to the normal range.
Research shows you can lower your risk for type 2 diabetes by 58% by:
- Losing 7% of your body weight (or 15 pounds if you weigh 200 pounds)
- Exercising moderately (such as brisk walking) 30 minutes a day, five days a week
Nine out of 10 Americans most at risk for type 2 diabetes don’t know it. The American Diabetes Association has a 60-second test you can take to see if you are at risk. It could be the first step toward leading a healthier life. You can take the test here diabetes.org/risktest.