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Diabetes is a disorder of the metabolism caused as a result of the way our bodies use digested food for growth and energy. Glucose is the body\'s natural fuel source provided by the food we eat. This supply of energy use the bloodstream to be transported around where it can be absorbed by the cells but diabetes stops this from happening.
If this glucose remains in the blood and is not absorbed in to the body as it needs to, abnormally high levels of blood glucose or high blood sugar levels as it is also known as, occur.
Information in this article is regarding the two major types of the condition. In type 1diabetes, which is also called juvenile onset diabetes or insulin-dependent where the body completely stops producing any insulin; affected individuals or diabetics must take insulin daily to survive. Our bodies produce insulin to help maintain the correct level of glucose (sugar) in the blood stream. The other type of diabetes (type 2 or late onset) is not quite so severe; the body is still producing insulin but there is a problem with its production or use, but fortunately this type can be treated with a special diet.
To stay alive we need energy, something which is supplied in abundance by everyday foods like various pastas, bread, potatoes, rice and fruit for instance. Some serious conditions can result from excess levels of glucose in the blood including blindness, heart and kidney disease and even the removal of limbs. However, it is possible to manage diabetes by maintaining a strict health regime; some of these conditions can be slowed down whilst others can even be stopped. It is possible to live a relatively normal life provided you stick to the plan laid out by your doctor; this includes watching your blood sugar levels, blood fat and cholesterol in addition to quitting smoking.
Apart from this, your blood pressure and weight should not go above the limits your doctor advised. Diabetes is a life long condition if you are unlucky enough to contract it; in the United States there are reports of it affecting over two and a half percent of the population. The problem is that here are probably another 5.5 million people who have this condition but just don\'t know it; over 600,000 new cases are diagnosed each year. It is believed that as many as 320,000 diabetics die each year in America whilst only 34,000 of those actually die directly from the condition itself.
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