linked<\/a> diabetes to many serious health complications: heart issues, stroke, vision issues, kidney damage, and many more. <\/p>\n\n\n\nThe biology of diabetes shows how things go awry. In a person without the disease, a hormone called insulin breaks down the sugar (glucose) in our food so it can go into our cells and turn into energy. That process doesn\u2019t work well in someone with diabetes. This leads to higher sugar levels in the blood and a cascade of other problems. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Symptoms of diabetes can include feeling very thirsty, frequent urination, losing weight without trying to, feeling tired, and having blurry vision. Worth noting: People with prediabetes may not show any of these symptoms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There are two types of diabetes\u2014type 1 and type 2\u2014and there are key differences between them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What\u2019s the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Type 1 diabetes is when the pancreas, the organ that makes insulin, doesn\u2019t make the hormone because your immune system is attacking the cells of the pancreas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Type 1 is far less common than type 2\u2014only 5.7% of all U.S. adults with diabetes have it. And it typically develops in kids and young adults, although it can come on at any age. The exact cause is unknown and lifestyle factors don\u2019t affect its development. Treatment requires lifelong insulin therapy and careful monitoring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In type 2 diabetes, your pancreas used<\/em> to make insulin. But now it makes less because it\u2019s kind of being \u2018burned out.\u2019 And your body also has become more resistant to insulin. Lifestyle factors such as a poor diet, being obese, or being sedentary often contribute to type 2 diabetes. <\/p>\n\n\n\nType 2 typically happens to older people, those over age 45. However, given the current issues with obesity, lifestyle, and diet, more people are now developing it at an earlier age, even as kids. <\/p>\n\n\n