Diabetes: An Overview

Introduction

Introduction to Diabetes

Diabetes mellitus, or diabetes, was recognized as a disease as early as 1500 B.C., when it was noticed that ants were attracted to the urine of people who had a disease that caused them to lose weight.^[2] By 1000 B.C., "water tasters" tasted the urine of people who were thought to have diabetes. If their urine tasted sweet, they were diagnosed with diabetes. The Latin word for honey, mellitus, was incorporated into the name, which became diabetes mellitus.

In the mid-1800s, researchers began to investigate digestion and diet as contributors to diabetes and special diets were prescribed.^[2] In 1908, Georg Zuelzer, a German scientist began injecting an extract from the pancreas to treat diabetes. Frederick Banting of Canada and Charles Best of the United States discovered insulin in 1921. By the 1940s, a connection between kidney and eye disease and diabetes had been determined. Over time, the purity of insulin was gradually improved, until synthetic insulin was introduced in 1983. Delivery of insulin was greatly improved with the development of pumps in the early 1990s. With greater control of insulin delivery, more precise management of blood glucose was possible.

Currently, 23.6 million people in the U. S., or 7.8% of the population, have diabetes. Although it is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, nearly 6 million are unaware that they have diabetes.^[1] These individuals are at greater risk for heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, blindness, kidney disease, and nerve damage, making both diagnosis and management critical. Read on to learn what you can do if you or someone close to you may have diabetes.

This Elder Health Guide was published on October 13, 2009 and was updated on December 23, 2009.