Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes: Full Guide to Diabetes Management

Diabetes mellitus management can be really confusing and stressful, especially when recently diagnosed. In this video, Amy gives you tips and tricks on how to control diabetes, avoid its complications, and lower high blood sugar naturally.
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Diabetes is a condition when your blood glucose level, also known as blood sugar level, is too high. Blood glucose is your main source of energy and comes from the food you eat. Insulin, a hormone made by the pancreas, helps glucose from food get into your cells to be used for energy. When you have diabetes, your body doesn’t produce enough insulin or doesn’t use it effectively. Glucose then stays in your blood and doesn’t reach your cells. Over time, having too much glucose in your blood can cause health problems.

Type 1 diabetes is usually diagnosed in children and teens, but it can develop at any age. It’s thought to be an autoimmune reaction when your body mistakenly attacks the cells that produce insulin. So, in this case, your body produces very little or no insulin, so you need daily insulin injections to maintain blood glucose levels under control. The exact cause of type 1 diabetes is still unknown. There may be both genetic and environmental factors, but your lifestyle choices don’t play a role here. Type 1 diabetes symptoms can develop in just a few weeks or months.

Type 2 diabetes is the most common type of diabetes. About 90–95% of people with diabetes have type 2, and it’s usually diagnosed in adults. If you have type 2 diabetes, your body doesn't produce enough insulin or can’t use it efficiently. There are several risk factors that may increase the risk:
- Being overweight or obese
- Physical inactivity
- Family history of diabetes
- Race and ethnicity
- Age
- History of gestational diabetes
Also, before people develop type 2 diabetes, they almost always have "prediabetes." It’s when your blood sugar levels are higher than normal but not yet high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes.