Type II diabetes is a serious problem that gets worse over the years. The CDC predicts that by 2050, one in three American adults could have diabetes. Type II diabetes occurs when the body gradually loses its ability to use or produce insulin, it is the main cause of diabetes cases. A person with diabetes has many risk factors associated with this disease. Diabetic patients are two to four times more likely to have a stroke and die from heart disease. Diabetes is the leading cause of new blindness and non-traumatic amputations. Insulin is a hormone found in the body that plays an essential role in many body functions. Insulin is a hormone consisting of a small polypeptide protein secreted by the pancreas and affects the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Your body breaks down these nutrients into sugar molecules, amino acid molecules, and lipid molecules. The body can also store and reassemble these molecules into more complex forms. Insulin causes the storage of these nutrients. After eating a meal, blood sugar rises quickly, especially after eating carbohydrates, which signals the release of insulin. Insulin binds to insulin receptors outside of cells to open channels for glucose to enter the cell for storage by means of GLUT-4 inside the cell. With insulin resistance, the pancreas has to work harder to compensate for the insulin resistance, but as resistance gets worse, the pancreas can't keep up and blood sugar remains high. One of the main ways to prevent type II diabetes and high blood sugar is to improve the patient's insulin sensitivity. Exercise has an effect on the body similar to that of insulin by stimulating cells to absorb blood sugar to...... middle of paper ......exercise training on age-related changes in insulin sensitivity and muscle oxidative capacity. Diabetes. 2003;52(8):1888-96.4. CDC. Youth Risk Behavior Monitoring – United States, 2011. MMWR 2012;61(SS-4)5. CDC. Physical activity levels in children aged 9–13 years—United States, 2002. MMWR 2003;52(SS-33):785–788.6. Yokoyama H, Emoto M, Araki T, Fujiwara S, al e. Effect of aerobic exercise on plasma adiponectin levels and insulin resistance in type 2 diabetes. Diabetes care. 2004;27(7):1756-8.7. Facts about type 2 diabetes. http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/type-2/facts-about-type-2.html Published January 23, 2014. Accessed February 20, 2014.8. CDC. http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/physicalactivity/facts.htm, published February 19, 2013. Accessed February 21, 2014.9 Hall J, Guyton A. Guyton and Hall Textbook of Medical Physiology. 12th ed. Saunders.2010.