What is Diabetes???

Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a condition in which blood glucose levels are above normal. Most of the food that we eat is converted into glucose, known as sugar. Our bodies use this glucose for energy. A hormone called insulin, is then produced by the pancreas, an organ that is near the stomach. The insulin then helps glucose get into the cells of our bodies. When you have diabetes, your body either doesn't make insulin or can't use its own insulin as well as it should. This then causes sugar to build up in your bloodstream. This build up of sugar is toxic and can lead to many complications such as heart disease and stroke, blindness, kidney failure, nerve disease, non-traumatic amputations, coma, and death. The main goal with diabetes is to control blood sugars as close to normal to delay and possibly prevent these complications. Diabetes is also one of the top 10 leading causes of death in the United States by disease. It kills more people every year then breast cancer and AIDs combined.