Diabetes is a life -long disease in which the body cannot produce insulin or cannot use the insulin it produces . Insulin is the key hormone involved in the storage and controlled release of glucose in the blood . Glucose , a sugar , is transported into the muscles and fat cells with the help of insulin for use as energy . Without insulin , glucose remains in the blood which over time can cause serious health problems such as heart disease , vision loss and kidney disease .
Diabetes affects about 400 million people worldwide today and about 50 % of these people are undiagnosed . This number is expected to reach about 500 million people by 2040 . It is the eighth leading cause of death worldwide and is usually irreversible . Although patients can lead a reasonably normal lifestyle , its late complications result in reduced life expectancy and major health costs .
There isn’t a cure yet for diabetes , but there are available therapeutic options that limit disease and reduce complications. These options include healthy lifestyle habits , taking medicine, self -management education, and keeping appointments with your healthcare team .

Types of Diabetes
There are three main types of diabetes : type 1 , type 2 , and gestational diabetes ( diabetes while pregnant ) .

Type 1 diabetes
This is usually diagnosed in children , teens and young adults . If you have type 1 diabetes , you’ll need to take insulin every day to survive. The body’ s immune system attacks and destroys the cells that produce insulin thereby stopping production . About five percent of the people who have diabetes have type 1 . Currently , there are no documented ways to prevent this .

Type 2 diabetes
This is usually diagnosed in adults ( though increasingly in children, teens, older people and a result of one’s lifestyle ) . It accounts for 90 % of all cases of diabetes . The initial problem in Type 2 diabetes is the resistance to the action of insulin. Thereafter, your body is unable to produce enough insulin to keep blood sugar at normal levels . You may not notice any symptoms , so it is important to get your blood sugar tested if you ’re at risk.

Gestational diabetes
This develops in pregnant women who have never had diabetes . During pregnancy , some women have such high levels of blood glucose that their body is unable to produce enough insulin to absorb it all . Gestational diabetes usually goes away after your baby is born but increases your risk for type 2 diabetes later in life . If you have gestational diabetes , your baby could be at higher risk for health complications.

Prediabetes
Another entity that is even equally sinister but less talked about regarding poor glucose control is prediabetes.
It is a serious health condition where blood sugar levels are higher than normal , but not high enough yet to be diagnosed as diabetes . Many people have pre -diabetes , and 90 % of them don’t know they have it.
If your blood sugar level is above the normal range , your risk of developing full- blown diabetes is increased . It is very important for diabetes to be diagnosed as early as possible because it will get progressively worse if left untreated .

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