Type 2 Diabetes Overview
What is type 2 diabetes?
Written by Lisa M. Leontis RN, ANP-C and Kamiah A. Walker
Reviewed by Amy Hess-Fischl MS, RD, LDN, BC-ADM, CDE
Type 2 diabetes (also called type 2 diabetes mellitus) is more common than type 1 diabetes. Around 90 to 95% of people with diabetes have type 2 diabetes. There are several key differences between type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
The most important difference is in the hormone insulin. People with type 2 diabetes produce insulin, but their bodies don’t use it correctly; people with type 1 diabetes don’t produce insulin at all. People with type 2 can be insulin resistant, when their cells don’t respond to insulin as they should. They can also be unable to produce enough insulin to handle the glucose in their body. Insulin is needed to allow the glucose to travel from the blood stream into our cells, where it’s used to create energy.
Type 2 used to be called adult onset diabetes or non-insulin dependent diabetes because it was diagnosed mainly in older people, and they did not take insulin (they weren’t dependent on insulin). However, more children are starting to be diagnosed with type 2 and insulin is used more frequently, so the names are no longer correct.
Type 2 diabetes is usually associated with being overweight (BMI greater than 25), unhealthy eating choices, and lack of exercise. And while it’s true that too much body fat and physical inactivity does increase the likelihood of developing type 2, even people who are fit and trim can develop this type of diabetes.
Being told that you have type 2 diabetes can be frightening. It is a chronic condition that you will deal with for the rest of your life, but it doesn’t have to define your life. Learn all you can about how best to manage your diabetes—which you can do here on EndocrineWeb—and be proactive in taking good care of you.
Last updated on 06/23/10
First published on 05/26/09
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