Diabetes is a disease that prevents the human body from creating or using insulin effectively. The body needs insulin to capture energy or sugars and convert them into energy. The human body needs energy to survive. Diabetes can be divided into three main categories. In type 1 diabetes, the body does not produce any insulin. Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body doesn't produce enough insulin or doesn't use it properly. Rather, gestational diabetes is type 2 diabetes in pregnant women, which usually returns to normal after birth (Ruder 7-8). Having too much glucose (sugar) in your blood or a blood sugar level consistently above 126 milligrams of glucose per deciliter. means the person is diabetic. Healthy people without diabetes will have a fasting blood sugar between 70 and 110 mg/dL. “The medical term for this disease is diabetes mellitus. Mellitus is a Latin word meaning “sweet honey,” referring to excess sugar in the blood and urine” (Collazo-Clavell 7). Insulin is a hormone made by the beta cells of the pancreas. “A hormone is a chemical that is made in one part of the body and travels in the blood to other parts of the body, where it has powerful effects” (Greene 9). Insulin helps transport glucose into cells. If this energy cannot reach the cells, one cannot survive (Greene 9). Insulin plays a very important role in how cells handle everything from carbohydrates to proteins and even fats. The human body needs glucose, which it extracts from carbohydrates. Glucose is what gives cells the energy to do their jobs, especially in the brain. The brain uses almost entirely glucose to function. Carbohydrates come in three forms: sugars, starches and fiber. Sugars are simple carbohydrates. Simple car... middle of paper ... Mayo Clinic, 2001. Print. "Diabetes and Pregnancy: MedlinePlus." US National Library of Medicine. US National Library of Medicine, nd Web. December 16, 2013. “Diabetes Basics.” Type 1. American Diabetes Association, nd Web. December 16, 2013.Greene, Bob, John Jerome. Merendino and Janis Jibrin. The best life guide for managing diabetes and prediabetes. New York: Simon & Schuster, 2009. Print. Reddy, S. Sethu K. The Cleveland Clinic Guide to Diabetes. New York: Kaplan Pub., 2009. Print.Rubin, Alan L. Diabetes for Dummies. 4th ed. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, 2012. Print.Ruder, Kate. The American Diabetes Association's comprehensive guide to diabetes. Ed. Greg Guthrie. Fifth ed. Alexandria: American Diabetes Association, 2011. Print.Staff, Mayo Clinic. "Definition." Mayo Clinic. Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research, January 25, 2013. Web. December 16. 2013.