The Lowdown on Diabetes

Diabetes has become a major public health concern. Consider that in 2005, 1.5 million new cases of diabetes were diagnosed in people aged 20 or older. That's one of the many reasons why it's important to learn as much as you can about preventing and managing this life-threatening disease. Let's start with the basics.

Diabetes is a disease that prevents your body from properly using the energy from food you eat. To understand diabetes, it helps to understand insulin and its role in metabolism. 

Did You Know...

There are 20.8 million children and adults in the United States who have diabetes.

• It's estimated that 6.2 million of the people who have diabetes do not know it.

• About one in every 400 to 600 children and adolescents has type 1 diabetes.

• The risk for death among people with diabetes is about twice that of people without diabetes of similar age.

• Diabetes is the fifth-deadliest disease in the United States. Since 1987, the death rate due to diabetes has increased by 45%, while the death rates due to heart disease, stroke and cancer have declined.

• If present trends continue, one in three American and one in two minorities born in 2000 will develop diabetes in their lifetime. 

Are You at Risk for Diabetes?

Anyone can get diabetes at any age, but there are some factors that increase your risk of developing diabetes.  Some common risk factors include:

• Age (over 45 years)

• Being overweight/obese

• Injury to pancreas