Abstract

Diabetes, a term that physicians frequently use to refer to a set of metabolic illnesses, is characterized by elevated blood glucose due to either insufficient insulin secretion, improper insulin cellular response, or both. Patients with elevated blood sugar often have polyuria (frequent urine), polydipsia (growing thirst), and polyphagia (increasing hunger). The definition of diabetes mellitus and its cause: The word diabetes is Greek in origin and means “siphon.” Diabainin was the term given to the illness by the Greek physician Aretus the Cappadocian in the second century A.D. He explained people with polyuria, or the overflow of water, as if they were a siphon. The Medieval Latin diabetes was adopted by the English, and so the word “diabetes.” Although it’s more often called diabetes, Thomas Willis added mellitus to the phrase in 1675. The word “mel” in Latin means “honey,” therefore persons with diabetes have high blood and urine glucose levels because glucose tastes sweet, just like honey. “Siphoning off sweet water” could be a literal description of diabetes mellitus. People noticed in ancient China that some people’s urine would attract ants due to its sweetness. It was decided to call it “Sweet Urine Disease.”

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