November is National Diabetes Awareness Month, a time for everyone to become more aware about the seriousness of diabetes and the importance of diabetes prevention control. Diabetes is a chronic, lifelong disease marked by high levels of sugar in the blood. Diabetes affects more than 20 million Americans and more than 40 million Americans have prediabetes, which is early type 2 diabetes. Insulin is a hormone produced by the pancreas to control blood sugar. Diabetes can be caused by too little insulin, resistance to insulin, or both.

Some of the symptoms of high  blood levels of glucose can cause several problems, including blurry vision, excessive thirst, fatigue, frequent urination, hunger, and weight loss. Because type 2 diabetes develops slowly, some people with high blood sugar experience no symptoms at all.

Type 1 diabetes is deadly in America. Some of the symptoms include fatigue, increased thirst, increased urination, nausea, vomiting, and weight loss in spite of increased appetite. Some symptoms of type 2 diabetes include blurred vision, fatigue, increased appetite, increased thirst, and increased urination.

Getting tested on an annual basis is a great way to prevent the long-term disease.

“It’s important for everyone to get tested,” Corey Brewer said. “I have been tested every year since I was in high school.”

Regular exercise is important for people with diabetes and to help prevent the disease. Getting a regular amount of exercise can help with blood sugar, weight loss, and high blood pressure. People that exercise are less likely to experience a heart attack or stroke than those who don’t exercise.

For more information about the deadly disease you can visit the American Diabetes Association website at www.diabetes.org.