Welcome to better health . . . . Humana Military is pleased to provide you with a comprehensive collection of resources and tools dedicated to helping you effectively manage diabetes and the possible complications that can arise in connection with this chronic condition. Nothing is more important than your health. And when you have a chronic condition, staying healthy is often more difficult. Humana Military’s on-line source for diabetes self-management is designed to help you understand your condition and learn to identify and manage the symptoms before you experience an emergency situation.
Diabetes occurs when your body fails to make enough insulin or, if it does, the body does not use it properly. Insulin is the hormone that helps balance the amount of sugar in your blood by changing it into the energy needed for daily life. Your blood always has some glucose (sugar) in it because your body needs glucose for energy to keep you going. Too much glucose in the blood causes pre-diabetes or diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes is a chronic condition that occurs when the pancreas produces little or no insulin. It occurs most often in children and young adults. People with Type 1 diabetes must take daily insulin injections to stay alive. This type of diabetes is less common and used to be called juvenile diabetes or insulin dependent diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes is the more common form of the disease accounting for more than 90% of cases. Insulin is being produced, but the body doesn’t use it to convert the sugar to stored energy. This is called insulin resistance. If it does convert the sugar to energy, the body cannot easily get the energy out of the cells. The pancreas may not produce enough insulin to meet the body’s needs. Even a moderate reduction in insulin production can result in high blood sugar levels when it occurs in combination with insulin resistance.Type 2 diabetes can occur in all age groups, but it is diagnosed most often in adults age 45 or older. Diet and physical activity help to control type 2 diabetes. Most people also need to take diabetes pills or insulin. Type 2 diabetes used to be called adult onset diabetes or non-insulin dependent diabetes.
