The above normal concentration of glucose in blood is caused by a metabolic disorder called as diabetes. Depending on the cause, it is classified as Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. When the body doesn’t produce enough insulin to digest excess glucose in blood, type 1 occurs and when body cells are not able to use insulin efficiently – a condition called insulin resistance, type two occurs.

A debilitating disease that kills slowly but surely if untreated is diabetes. Long term effects are glaucoma, kidney failure, nerve damage etc. Diabetes is diagnosed at the earliest in case of children and it becomes all the more important.

Signs of diabetes in children can be looked forward below:

Symptoms of type 1 diabetes:

*  Retarded or slow development: Children with diabetes are generally underdeveloped compared to their peers and diabetes damages body tissue and slows down natural growth and development.

* Fatigue: Laziness, fatigue and lack of energy are prominent symptoms.

* Weight loss: Some children lose weight rapidly and have a frail and lean appearance.

* Hunger and Elevated thirst :  As the body is starved of energy frequency of urination, thirst and hunger generally increases.

* Other symptoms include drowsiness and low blood pressure.

Symptoms of type 2 diabetes:

* Obesity: Obesity is one of the most prominent indicators of type 2 diabetes. The glucose gets stored as fat resulting in childhood obesity when body cells absorb glucose but are not able to digest it.

* Note that children with a family history of diabetes are much more likely to inherit it.

* Extreme and frequent hunger is a common indicator; body cells cannot digest glucose due to insulin tolerance resulting in hunger. Consuming food only helps to increase blood glucose levels.

* High blood glucose levels trigger the development of dark skin patches, especially in the neck and toe regions.
* Note that children with type 2 diabetes are a at higher risk of developing cardiovascular diseases if the condition is left untreated.

These are the general signs of diabetes in children, if your children have any of the above symptoms have then tested immediately.