Diabetes

Diabetes is, at heart, a problem of fuel: the body either stops making the hormone insulin or stops responding to it, and blood sugar climbs. This section starts with the overview — how the whole system works and how diabetes is treated — then turns to the part of daily life that raises the most questions, food: a careful guide to what to eat, and a quiz to test yourself. These are explainers, not medical advice; for anything that affects you personally, see a qualified professional.

• Overview: diabetes and blood sugar

  How blood sugar and insulin work, the real difference between Type 1 and Type 2, how it’s diagnosed by HbA1c and monitored, the complications that matter, the discovery of insulin, and modern treatment from CGMs and pumps to metformin and the GLP-1 drugs.

• Eating with diabetes — foods to enjoy and to limit

  Why food moves blood sugar, the foods to enjoy, watch and limit across British, Indian, Mediterranean, East-Asian and Middle-Eastern kitchens, honest answers on bananas, nuts, flours, rice and chocolate, every kind of drink, and how walking and sleep help — with simple charts and the tools that make it easier.

• Diabetes food quiz

  Guess whether each of hundreds of common foods is a smart choice for blood sugar or one to go easy on, then read a plain-English explainer for every answer. Tracks your score and streak, filters by category, and includes a searchable list of every food.