People with type 2 diabetes need to watch their weight and maintain a healthy, balanced diet. But in moderation, and as part of a healthy meal plan, desserts or other sugary foods are not off limits.

Diabetes, which is a major cause of heart disease and stroke, is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, and type 2 diabetes accounts for 90% to 95% of all diagnosed cases of diabetes. Overall, the risk for death among people with diabetes is about twice that of people of similar age who don’t have diabetes.

Diabetes is caused by problems related to the hormone insulin, which helps turn blood sugar (glucose) into energy. With type 2 diabetes, a problem called insulin resistance occurs when the body's cells can’t use insulin properly and make an abundance to overcome the increase in blood glucose levels. When this happens, the pancreas can gradually lose its ability to produce insulin; the increased amount of sugar in the blood can damage nerves and blood vessels. Chronically elevated blood sugars lead to such complications as heart disease, stroke, and kidney disease.

People with type 2 diabetes don't always have symptoms. In fact, an estimated 27% of all people with diabetes (not just type 2 diabetes) don't know they have it.

Excessive thirst is a major symptom of high blood sugars. Other major symptoms include dry mouth, increased hunger (especially after eating), frequent urination, fatigue, unexplained weight loss, blurred vision, and headaches. These symptoms are all caused by high blood sugar. Other symptoms of type 2 diabetes may include slow-healing wounds, itching, numbness and tingling of the hands and feet, weight gain, frequent yeast infections, and impotency.

Type 2 diabetes was once called adult-onset diabetes, and the vast majority of people with type 2 diabetes are adults. But it can develop at any age, and health care providers are finding that children are being diagnosed with it more frequently.

Type 2 diabetes usually doesn't start suddenly. Some people are first diagnosed with prediabetes (also known as impaired glucose tolerance or impaired fasting glucose). Lifestyle changes, such as weight loss if you are overweight, dietary improvements, and exercise, can often ward off full-blown diabetes. Some people at high risk for developing type 2 diabetes can reduce their risk further by taking the prescription drug metformin -- but lifestyle change is a must.

In a recent study, people at high risk for type 2 diabetes were put on a weight loss and physical activity plan for three years, and researchers found that it reduced their chances of developing type 2 diabetes by 58% and by 71% if they were age 60 or older.

People who often drink coffee may be less likely than other people to have type 2 diabetes, according to a review of studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Experts say the benefit is not related to caffeine, but to other components of coffee -- possibly antioxidants or magnesium and chromium, which help the body use insulin. Still, no studies have proven that drinking coffee prevents type 2 diabetes.

High-sugar or high-salt diets are not, in themselves, risk factors for type 2 diabetes. However, if either leads to obesity, it contributes to the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Other risk factors for diabetes include age, family history, inactivity, and ethnicity (people of African, Asian, Pacific Islander, American Indian, and Latino heritage have a higher risk). However, having one or more of the risk factors doesn’t mean you’ll develop type 2 diabetes.

Elevated blood sugars can cause eye damage and blindness, heart disease, nerve and blood vessel damage, kidney disease, and other major health problems. There is no evidence that diabetes causes prostate cancer or arthritis.

Depression and diabetes often go together. According to the CDC, depression is twice as common among people with diabetes as among other people. But it's not clear which comes first, the depression or the diabetes, or that one causes the other.

High blood pressure is a common complication of diabetes, and gum disease is also more common in people with diabetes.