What are type 1 and type 2 diabetes?
Type 2 diabetes is the most common form. It appears most often in middle-aged adults; however, adolescents and young adults are developing type 2 diabetes at an alarming rate. It develops when the body doesn’t make enough insulin and doesn’t efficiently use the insulin it makes (insulin resistance). Type 1 diabetes usually occurs in children and young adults. In type 1, the pancreas makes little or no insulin. Without daily injections of insulin, people with type 1 diabetes won’t survive. Both forms of diabetes may be inherited in genes. A family history of diabetes can significantly increase the risk of developing diabetes. Untreated diabetes can lead to many serious medical problems. These include blindness, kidney disease, nerve disease, limb amputations and cardiovascular disease (CVD). How are insulin resistance, diabetes and CVD related? Diabetes is treatable, but even when glucose levels are under control, it greatly increases the risk of heart disease and stroke. In fact, most
