http://www.ck12.org Chapter 1. Human Biology
1.57 Diabetes
- Explain why diabetes occurs.
What do these foods have in common?
These foods are all high in sugar. A person with diabetes has to avoid these types of foods.
Diabetes
Diabetesis a non-infectious disease in which the body is unable to control the amount of sugar in the blood. People
with diabetes have high blood sugar, either because their bodies do not produce enough insulin, or because their
cells do not respond to insulin.Insulinis a hormone that helps cells take up sugar from the blood. Without enough
insulin, the blood contains too much sugar. This can damage blood vessels and other cells throughout the body. The
kidneys work hard to filter out and remove some of the extra sugar. This leads to frequent urination and excessive
thirst.
There are two main types of diabetes, type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes makes up about 5-10%
of all cases of diabetes in the United States. Type 2 diabetes accounts for most of the other cases. Both types of
diabetes are more likely in people that have certain genes. Having a family member with diabetes increases the risk
of developing the disease.
Either type of diabetes can increase the chances of having other health problems. For example, people with diabetes
are more likely to develop heart disease and kidney disease. Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are similar in these ways.
However, the two types of diabetes have different causes.
Type 1 Diabetes
Type 1 diabetesoccurs when the immune system attacks normal cells of the pancreas. Since the cells in the pancreas