Diabetes

Diabetes is a condition in which too much sugar, or glucose, remains in the blood because the body doesn't properly convert sugar to energy. This happens when there's a lack of insulin — a hormone that allows sugar to enter cells where it's converted to energy — or when insulin isn't working properly.

During the normal digestion process, the pancreas senses the amount of sugar in the bloodstream and releases insulin to keep blood sugar in a normal range. With diabetes, the pancreas doesn't produce the right amount of insulin. Sugar accumulates in the blood and spills over into the urine, causing frequent urination, a symptom of diabetes.

Diabetes is the fifth deadliest condition in the United States, affecting children, teenagers and adults. If diabetes is not managed properly, high blood sugar levels over many years can lead to complications, including blindness, kidney failure and loss of sensation in the extremities that could result in amputation. Maintaining near-normal blood sugar levels can delay or prevent these complications.

Type 1 diabetes, in which pancreas cells don't make insulin, most often affects children and young adults. Adults usually have type 2 diabetes, in which the body's cells don't use insulin properly. However, a rise in childhood obesity and a sedentary lifestyle are causing an increase in the number of children and teenagers who have type 2 diabetes. In addition, there's gestational diabetes that occurs in women during pregnancy and a form called maturity onset diabetes of the young (MODY), related to a single gene.

Experts in the Pediatric Diabetes Program at UCSF Children's Hospital will help you manage your child's blood sugar levels. Managing diabetes involves the whole family. Our team — including doctors, dietitians, patient educators and social workers — evaluates and cares for patients as well as conducts research on new diabetes treatments. Our patients have opportunities to participate in those studies.

For information or to make an appointment, please call:
Pediatric Diabetes Program at (415) 353-7337

Reviewed by health care specialists at UCSF Children's Hospital.
Last updated May 8, 2007