Diabetes mellitus

Inside you, there's a super important sugar called glucose. It's like fuel for your body's tiny workers, called cells. To get glucose into your cells, your body needs a special helper called insulin. Insulin is made in a part of your body called the pancreas. Think of insulin like a key that unlocks the door to your cells, letting the glucose in to give you energy to run, jump, and play!

Sometimes, the body doesn't make enough insulin, or the insulin it makes doesn't work right. This is called diabetes. When this happens, the glucose can't get into the cells and stays in your blood, like too many cars stuck on a highway.

This can make you feel tired and sick. There are different kinds of diabetes, like Type 1, where the body stops making insulin, and Type 2, where the insulin doesn't work as well.

People have known about diabetes for thousands of years! Ancient doctors noticed that people with this condition had very sweet pee. That's why the name 'diabetes' comes from a Greek word meaning 'to pass through' and 'mellitus' is Latin for 'honey-sweet'.

For a very long time, there wasn't much doctors could do. But in 1921, scientists discovered insulin, which was a HUGE help for people with diabetes!

People with diabetes can live happy and healthy lives! They learn to manage their blood sugar by eating healthy foods, being active, and sometimes taking medicine or insulin. It's like learning to be a super-manager of your body's energy factory.

Doctors and families help people with diabetes learn how to check their blood sugar and make sure their body has the right amount of energy to feel great every day.