There are a few different types of diabetes:
- Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. The immune system attacks and
destroys cells in the pancreas, where insulin is made. It’s unclear what causes
this attack. About 10 percent of people with diabetes
have this type.
- Type 2 diabetes occurs when your body
becomes resistant to insulin, and sugar builds up in your blood.
- Prediabetes occurs when your blood sugar is higher than
normal, but it’s not high enough for a diagnosis of type 2 diabetes.
- Gestational diabetes is high blood sugar
during pregnancy. Insulin-blocking hormones produced by the placenta cause
this type of diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes
Type 2 diabetes
Gestational diabetes
Symptoms
General symptoms
- increased hunger
- increased thirst
- weight loss
- frequent
urination
- blurry
vision
- extreme
fatigue
- sores
that don’t heal
Symptoms in men
Symptoms in women
Type 1 diabetes
- extreme hunger
- increased thirst
- unintentional
weight loss
- frequent
urination
- blurry vision
- tiredness
Type 2 diabetes
- increased hunger
- increased thirst
- increased
urination
- blurry vision
- tiredness
- sores that are
slow to heal
Gestational diabetes
Diagnosis
- The fasting plasma glucose (FPG) test measures your
blood sugar after you’ve fasted for 8 hours.
- The A1C test provides a
snapshot of your blood sugar levels over the previous 3 months.
- During the glucose challenge test, your blood sugar
is checked an hour after you drink a sugary liquid.
- During the 3 hour glucose tolerance test, your blood
sugar is checked after you fast overnight and then drink a sugary liquid.
Type 1 diabetes
- Rapid-acting
insulin starts to work within 15 minutes and its effects last for 3 to 4
hours.
- Short-acting
insulin starts to work within 30 minutes and lasts 6 to 8 hours.
- Intermediate-acting
insulin starts to work within 1 to 2 hours and lasts 12 to 18 hours.
- Long-acting
insulin starts to work a few hours after injection and lasts 24 hours or
longer.
Type 2 diabetes
Types of drug
|
How they work
|
Example(s)
|
Alpha-glucosidase inhibitors
|
Slow your body’s breakdown of sugars and
starchy foods
|
Acarbose (Precose) and miglitol (Glyset
|
Biguanides
|
Reduce the amount of glucose your
liver makes
|
Metformin (Glucophage)
|
DPP-4 inhibitors
|
Improve your blood sugar without making
it drop too low
|
Linagliptin (Tradjenta), saxagliptin
(Onglyza), and sitagliptin (Januvia)
|
Glucagon-like peptides
|
Change the way your body produces insulin
|
Dulaglutide (Trulicity), exenatide
(Byetta), and liraglutide (Victoza)
|
Meglitinides
|
Stimulate your pancreas to release more
insulin
|
Nateglinide (Starlix) and repaglinide
(Prandin)
|
SGLT2 inhibitors
|
Release more glucose into the urine
|
Canagliflozin (Invokana) and
dapagliflozin (Farxiga)
|
Sulfonylureas
|
Stimulate your pancreas to release more insulin
|
Glyburide (DiaBeta, Glynase), glipizide (Glucotrol), and glimepiride (Amaryl)
|
Thiazolidinediones
|
Help insulin work better
|
Pioglitazone (Actos) and rosiglitazone
(Avandia)
|














