When it comes to diabetes information, the main things that you should be concerned with are the diabetes risk factors that you might have, what you should watch for and how you can manage the disease that is grouped into three types.

Diabetes Risk Factors – Know What They Are

The type of diabetes does not matter when it comes to the basic tenet of the disease, and that is that there is too much blood glucose or sugar in your blood stream. It doesn’t matter what the reasons are, diabetes risk factors speak for themselves if you have too much sugar in your blood serious health problems can occur.

Type 1 diabetes will normally occur in childhood, when the pancreas ceases to produce insulin. If you have a father, mother, brother or sister diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes the American Diabetes Association highly recommends that you be tested for diabetes, because hereditary is the main cause for this type of diabetes.

In addition, if there is any type of injury, illness or the rare infection that might afflict the pancreas. Since it is the pancreas that produces insulin, a hormone that enables your body to utilize energy, it is imperative that if any of the above occurs that you are frequently tested and screened for diabetes.

Type 2 diabetes, on the other hand, will manifest itself when the body is unable to utilize the insulin that is produced, thus creating a condition that is known as, “insulin resistant”.

Unfortunately, being overweight or obese, as tests have shown, especially in the youth that Type 2 diabetes is on the rise for today’s teenagers and baby booming adults that are not following a low-fat diet and some sort of consistent exercise regimen.

As in Type 1 diabetes, your family history can increase your risk factor. Other unfortunate factors and one that cannot be ignored or discounted are your age and race. If you are Asian, African American, American Indian or Hispanic you are at a higher risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.

When we get older, we have a tendency to gain weight, exercise more infrequently and lose muscle mass, increasing our risk for Type 2 diabetes. For those women that developed gestational diabetes, when they were pregnant increases the risk of pre-diabetes an Type 2 diabetes later in life. If your baby weighs less than nine pounds, your risk of Type 2 diabetes is also on the increase.

Gestational diabetes is an affliction for pregnant women that are older than 25 years of age, have a predisposition because of family history of diabetes, are overweight prior to the pregnancy and are of the above races that are already at risk.

If diabetes risk factors are there – take action.

Really I should mention that there is really a third diabetes and that is pre diabetes and if you have been medically diagnosed with this it is a blessing as it gives you an opportunity to focus on your diet and exercise and by doing this and making healthier food choices and exercising you may miss getting diabetes altogether.  This is something to discuss further with your doctor.

No matter what type of diabetes that you might have all can be treated and maintained. Frequent sugar level testing, maintaining of diet, control of weight, regular doctor visits and the dialoging of your symptoms, and perhaps medications can reduce your diabetes risk factors and lead to a productive and a happy life.