Diabetes Basics

What is diabetes?

Diabetes is a lifelong disease in which your body does not make enough insulin or cannot properly use the insulin it produces. To understand diabetes one needs to know how the body normally uses sugar/glucose for energy.



What are the signs of diabetes?

When the glucose is not used, symptoms of diabetes begin to appear.
These include:

  • Lack of energy
  • Hunger
  • Weight loss

    Since the body cells are not using glucose for energy it starts to use stored fat for energy.
    Other signs of diabetes include:

  • Thirst
  • Vomiting
  • Abdominal pain
  • Weakness

    Types of Diabetes:

    There are 2 types of diabetes: Type I and Type II. In Type I, the body makes little or no insulin, and insulin must be given by injection. Type I diabetes is commonly called Juvenile Diabetes or Diabetes Mellitus. About 10% of all people with diabetes have Type I, it usually occurs in younger people, but can occur in older adults. This type of diabetes can be controlled through:

  • Daily injections
  • Meal planning
  • Exercise
  • Self blood glucose monitoring
  • Education

    In Type II diabetes, the most common type of diabetes, occurs when the body makes insulin, but the cells cannot use it properly. It most often occurs in people who are over 40 years of age, are over weight, and / or have a family history of diabetes. This type can be controlled through:
  • Meal planning
  • Reaching & maintaining a healthy weight
  • Exercise
  • Possible use of diabetes pills or insulin injections
  • Self blood glucose monitoring
  • Education.

    What Causes Diabetes

    In Canada, there are more than 1 million people living with either Type I or Type II diabetes. Although the cause is unknown, some factors contributing to the Type II diabetes are:
  • Heredity
  • Obesity
  • Pregnancy
  • Physical or Emotional Stress
  • Aging
  • Infections
  • and History of Pancreatic Disease

    With Type I the cause is unknown so far.