Last Updated on April 8, 2022 by Shabnam Sengupta
As per the National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and kidney disorders, “Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. Blood glucose is your main source of energy and comes from the food you eat. Insulin, a hormone made by the pancreas, helps glucose from food to get into your cells to be used for energy. Sometimes your body doesn’t make enough or any insulin or doesn’t use insulin well. Glucose then stays in your blood and doesn’t reach your cells.
Over time, having too much glucose in your blood can cause health problems. Although diabetes has no cure, you can take steps to manage your diabetes and stay healthy.”
The types of diabetes can be classified as:
Prediabetes is the stage before Type 2 diabetes. In this type, the blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough to be officially diagnosed with diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, meaning your body attacks itself. Here, the insulin-producing cells in your pancreas are destroyed. Earlier, it was known as “juvenile” diabetes as it’s usually diagnosed in children and young adults (although it can develop at any age). Up to 10% of people who have diabetes have Type 1. Patients need to take insulin every day, and this is why it is also called insulin-dependent diabetes.
In Type 2 diabetes your body either doesn’t make enough insulin or your body’s cells don’t respond normally to the insulin. It occurs in around 95% of diabetic patients and is the most common type. It usually occurs in the middle-aged and older people. It is also called adult-onset diabetes and insulin-resistant diabetes.
Lastly, Gestational diabetes develops in some women during their pregnancy. It usually goes away after pregnancy. However, if someone suffers from gestational diabetes, then they are at a higher risk of developing Type 2 diabetes later on in life.
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