Diabetes is officially called “diabetes mellitus,” but there are several related conditions that fall within this term. What these conditions have in common is that the body’s use of the insulin hormone is impaired. And that means that the body cannot correctly process blood glucose, and thus can’t maintain good health.

If you have Type 1 diabetes, your body produces no insulin. About 5 to 10 percent of all people with diabetes have Type 1 diabetes. If you have Type 2 diabetes, which is far more common, your body may still produce some insulin, but its ability to use this hormone to regulate health is impaired. Perhaps 90 to 95 percent of all people with diabetes have Type 2 diabetes, which can progress through various stages of severity. Type 2 diabetes was once associated only with adults, but it is increasingly appearing among younger people as well.

Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes are the main forms of diabetes. But there are some other special circumstances that are also viewed as forms of the condition. Some women who are pregnant can experience gestational diabetes—often a temporary condition, but potentially serious.

And, there is large group of people who have health conditions called “pre-diabetes.” These people are starting to experience the insulin impairments associated with Type 2 diabetes, but they do not yet meet the formal definition of diabetes. Without prompt attention, people with pre-diabetes are very likely to develop actual diabetes. If you have Type 2 diabetes, you may be concerned that your family members are at risk. Fortunately, pre-diabetes can be managed with some of the same techniques used to control Type 2 diabetes.

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