Diabetes: symptoms and and tests

Diabetes, or diabetes mellitus, affects over 1.4 million people in the UK, and it's possible that a million more have it without knowing. However, there are suggestive symptoms, which include an increased thirst, constant need to urinate, tiredness, weight loss and blurred vision. A blood test and a urine test can detect diabetes. If undetected it can lead to all sorts of health problems including poor vision and circulatory diseases.

Diabetes happens when the amount of glucose in the blood is too high. This is because the hormone that regulates the amount of glucose - insulin - either isn't produced in enough quantities, or isn't produced at all. If there isn't enough this is known as Type 2 diabetes; Type 1 is when the insulin stops working completely. Type 2 is the most common form of diabetes in the over 50s.

Who should be tested for it?

Anyone who notices the above-mentioned symptoms, or people over 40 and who are in a high-risk group, such as those who are overweight, Asian or with a family history of the disease.