Diabetes Info & Diabetes Supplies

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What is Diabetes

Throughout history, diabetes has been a leading cause of death by disease. Today, even with the availability of insulin and a great diabetic supplies, it is estimated that approximately one-half million North Americans die as a result of this condition and its complications like heart and kidney disease, stroke, blindness and amputation each year. Diabetes is a disease that touches millions in one way or another, whether it's those with the disease, friends or family members who are suffering the implications.

Simply put, it is a serious disease that impairs the body's ability to use food properly.

Diabetes Info

Normally, glucose, a form of blood sugar produced when starches and sugars are digested, is burned as fuel to supply the body with energy. This process - turning food into energy - is called metabolism.

But in order to metabolise glucose properly, the body requires another substance: insulin. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas, a gland located just beneath the stomach; its job is to regulate the body's use of glucose. Insulin is essential to the metabolic process.

Trying to burn glucose without insulin is like trying to cook food without heat. It can't be done. And that's the problem for people with diabetes: they either don't produce enough insulin to properly metabolise glucose, or the insulin they have works inefficiently.

Without insulin to turn glucose into energy the glucose piles up in the bloodstream and spills into the urine. Excessively high levels of sugar in the blood and the urine are the hallmarks of untreated diabetes.

The main goal of diabetes treatment is to control blood sugar levels and keep them in the normal range to avoid the complications such as heart and kidney disease, stroke, blindness and amputation. The specific kind of treatment used to control blood sugars depends on the type of diabetes a person has.

Diabetes affects an estimated 18.2 million Americans, and the number rises each year. Find in-depth information here about diabetes prevention, diet, treatments, and research. Plus, find daily support and nutritional tips in our diabetes forums. If you have gotten the diagnosis - diabetes type 1 or type 2, than it's time to understand the conditions, complications, and concerns associated with these chronic diseases. Living with diabetes requires a new way of life. And no one understands that better than other diabetics. So come here to discuss everything from symptoms to treatments, from diet to insulin pumps. Folks here will know exactly how you feel. Also we everyday do our best to find low cost diabetic supplies for you, at every moment.