Diabetes

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Diabetes mellitus is a long-term (chronic) disease that is caused by too much glucose (sugar) in the blood. This happens because there is not enough of the hormone insulin.

There are two types of diabetes.

Type I or insulin-dependent diabetes

This happens when the body produces little or no insulin. People who have this type of diabetes need treatment for the rest of their lives. They must check the levels of glucose in their blood regularly and watch out for complications. This is sometimes called juvenile-onset diabetes because it usually develops before the age of 40, often in the teenage years.

Type II or non-insulin dependent diabetes

This happens when the body does not make enough insulin or cannot use insulin properly. This type of diabetes is usually linked with obesity (someone who is very overweight). It used to be referred to as maturity-onset diabetes because it occurs mostly in people over the age of 40.

Diabetes affects 1.3 million people in the UK and there may be as many as a million other people who have the disease but do not know it yet. Nine out of ten people with diabetes have type II diabetes and over 80% of these people are overweight.

If a person with diabetes does not get treatment, it can lead to long-term health problems because the high glucose levels in the blood damage the blood vessels.