Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes. While type 2 cannot be cured, there are steps you can take to help live an active and healthy life.
At Banner Health, we want to give you the knowledge to stay healthy. Explore the causes, symptoms and ways you may live with and possibly prevent type 2 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes is a condition that affects the way your body uses blood glucose (blood sugar), an important source of fuel.
When you eat, your body breaks down food into glucose. This sugar is then used by your cells for energy. Your body needs insulin (a hormone made by the pancreas) to get glucose into your cells.
When you have type 2 diabetes, either your body does not produce enough insulin (pancreatic dysfunction) or it doesn’t use insulin the way it should (insulin resistance). When less glucose can enter your body’s cells, this can cause the level of sugar in your blood to become too high.
Type 2 diabetes is common worldwide. About 1 in 10 Americans has diabetes, and more than 90% of those who have diabetes have type 2.
Anyone can develop type 2 diabetes, but it mostly affects people who are over the age of 45, overweight and have a family history of diabetes. However, people younger than 45 and those at a normal weight can also develop it – including children.
Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are different in their root causes, but both can lead to serious health problems if left untreated.
In type 2 diabetes, the body cannot properly use insulin. In type 1 diabetes, the body completely stops making insulin because of an autoimmune condition where the body’s immune system mistakenly attacks and destroys healthy insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Because of this, most people with type 1 diabetes need to start using insulin shots as soon as they are diagnosed.
There are also other types of diabetes. Whatever type of diabetes you have, you need treatment and support to help you manage it.
In some people, type 2 diabetes can go undiagnosed. Many people don’t get any signs or don’t notice them. This is because early symptoms don’t always make you feel unwell.
Learn more about type 2 diabetes signs and symptoms.
Your chances of developing type 2 diabetes depend on many risk factors, some that can be controlled and others that cannot. You can develop it at any age, even during childhood.
Learn more about your risk for type 2 diabetes.
If you think you have type 2 diabetes, ask your health care provider for a blood test. It’s important that type 2 diabetes is diagnosed as early as possible to protect your health.
Learn more about testing and managing type 2 diabetes.
While there is currently no cure for type 2 diabetes, you can control it through lifestyle changes and medication. Managing your diabetes is the best way to prevent other health problems.
With proper treatment and lifestyle changes, some people can even put their type 2 diabetes into remission, meaning your blood sugar levels are below the diabetes range for at least three months, and therefore you do not have to take diabetes medications anymore.
Managing type 2 diabetes is a team effort. Talk to your provider or contact a Banner Health specialist who can help you manage your diabetes and answer questions. You can also visit our support and resources page for more information.
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