Facts About Diabetes
What is diabetes?
When you have diabetes, your body has a problem with insulin. It either doesn't make enough insulin or can't use the insulin it makes (insulin resistance). Insulin is a hormone released by the pancreas that helps sugar (glucose) enter your cells to be used as energy. "Without insulin, too much sugar remains in the bloodstream," said Amber Lin MD, a family medicine physician with PIH Health. "Over time, high blood sugar can lead to serious, potentially life-threatening health problems. That's why checking blood sugar levels each year is so important."
Type 1 diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. This means it's caused by the body's immune system. It destroys the cells in the pancreas that make insulin. Then your body makes little or no insulin. People with type 1 diabetes must take insulin every day to live. About 1 in 20 people with diabetes have type 1. People are more at risk if they have a parent or sibling with type 1 diabetes.
Most people are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when they are a child, teen, or young adult. But you may be diagnosed at any age. Caucasian Americans are at higher risk for type 1 diabetes. There is no way to prevent type 1 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body does not make enough insulin or cannot use insulin effectively.
Many people can manage type 2 diabetes through healthy eating, regular physical activity, and maintaining a healthy weight. Some people also need medication, insulin, or other treatments to help control their blood sugar levels.
Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes. Things that put you at risk for type 2 diabetes include:
- Prediabetes
- Excess weight
- Family history of type 2 diabetes
- Being age 45 or older
- History of gestational diabetes
- Not being physically active
- Taking certain medicines
You may be at higher risk if you are:
- African American
- Hispanic American
- American Indian
- Alaska Native
- Pacific Islander
- Asian American
You can delay or prevent type 2 diabetes with:
- Physical activity
- Weight loss
- Healthy eating
Gestational diabetes
This type only happens in pregnancy. It affects pregnant people who did not have diabetes before. They can't use the insulin their body makes. This type of diabetes often goes away after the baby is born. If not, it likely was not gestational diabetes. It was more likely type 1 or type 2 diabetes that began in pregnancy.
Gestational diabetes may be controlled with diet and exercise, and by watching weight gain. You may need to take medicines to control your blood sugar, and you may be at higher risk for type 2 later in life.
Complications of diabetes
Except for gestational diabetes, diabetes is an ongoing (chronic) disease. This means there is no known cure. It affects nearly every part of the body. It may lead to other serious diseases. And it can be life-threatening. You must work with a healthcare provider to manage your diabetes. With good blood sugar control, you may prevent the serious complications of the disease, or you can stop them from getting worse.
Complications of diabetes can include:
- Eye problems and blindness
- Gum disease
- Heart disease
- Stroke
- Nervous system problems
- Loss of a limb
- Kidney disease
- Impotence
- Diabetic ketoacidosis. As blood sugar cannot be used as a fuel source by your cells, fat is broken down by the liver into ketones to be used as fuel by cells. When ketones are made too quickly and build up in the blood, they can be toxic. This condition is known as diabetic ketoacidosis. It is a life-threatening condition and needs immediate medical attention.
Next Steps
Amber Lin MD
As an eight-year-old, Dr. Lin heard about people in Africa dying from easily treated diseases and decided to become a doctor to help. She chose to specialize in Family Medicine during her medical school OB/Gyn rotation when she discovered the joy and challenge of treating both babies and adults. “No two days are similar,” Dr. Lin explains. “As a Family Medicine practitioner, I can get to know an entire family as if they’re my own.” Dr. Lin has an interest in Tropical Medicine and Global Health. As the Program Director of the Family Medicine Residency Program in Whittier, California, she enjoys teaching the next generations of family medicine doctors for PIH Health and the community we serve. Dr. Lin travels to Africa in the Tropical Medicine rotation to provide residents with expertise and education in tropical medicine diseases. She also loves music, singing, and hip-hop dance when not practicing or teaching medicine.
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