Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a long-term health issue that causes high blood sugar. When left untreated or unmanaged, it can cause serious side effects throughout your body.
If you or a loved one lives with T2D or has a new diagnosis, UPMC can help.
Our team of experts provides complete, custom care for adults and teens with T2D.
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Related services include:
Diabetes means your blood sugar is higher than normal because your body doesn't use insulin the right way. It's a common disease that can lead to serious health problems.
T2D is the most common form of diabetes. More than 37 million people in the U.S. have diabetes, and more than 95% have type 2.
Lifestyle factors and genetics can cause T2D.
This type of diabetes often starts as prediabetes. With prediabetes, you don't make enough insulin, or your cells don't use insulin well.
Insulin helps get glucose (sugar) out of your blood and into your cells. If there's not enough or it doesn't work well, too much sugar stays in your blood.
Type 2 diabetes differs from type 1 diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that attacks your pancreas cells. Your body doesn't make insulin, so you must give yourself daily insulin shots. It's a far less common type of diabetes that forms in children or young adults.
With T2D, most people make some insulin, but not enough. T2D affects mostly middle-aged and older adults.
You may have a higher risk of T2D if you:
If left undiagnosed or untreated, high blood sugar can cause other health problems such as:
Lifestyle changes can reduce your risk of getting T2D, even if you have a family history.
You can:
T2D symptoms often advance slowly. Many people don't have symptoms in the early stages.
Over time, as blood sugar worsens, you might have some or all of these T2D symptoms and signs:
If you have any of these symptoms, visit your doctor and get tested for diabetes. They can do a quick fingerstick or standard blood test to check your glucose level.
Doctors may diagnose T2D diabetes if your:
Your doctor might also run these tests to make sure you don't get other diabetes-related health problems:
Diabetes is a long-term disease. The ideal treatment and management come from a team approach.
UPMC's combined team of diabetes experts includes:
We aim to give you a custom treatment, education, and support plan and the tools to stay healthy.
T2D treatment may include medication, lifestyle changes, or weight loss surgery.
Not all people need medicine to manage their diabetes. Some can improve their blood sugar with diet and lifestyle changes.
Others need T2D medications, such as:
To manage your blood sugar, a lifelong healthy diet and lifestyle are vital.
UPMC's experts can work with you one-on-one and in our diabetes support groups to help you:
Weight loss surgery (bariatric surgery) may help if diet and lifestyle changes don't work for you.
For many people, weight loss surgery can greatly improve blood sugar or reverse diabetes.
This is a major, life-changing surgery, and only some people qualify.
Guidelines recommend surgery for people 80 to 100 pounds overweight with a body mass index (BMI) more than 40. You may also qualify if you have a BMI of 35 or higher and obesity-related health issues, like diabetes.
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