Dr Amir Khan explains the two main types of diabetes - and symptoms to look out for

Dr Amir Khan appeared on Lorraine earlier this week to break down the two main types of diabetes, the symptoms you want to look out for, and his top five tips for preventing and managing them.

It was a shock when, earlier this week, new research from Diabetes UK showed that one in five adults in the UK are now living with diabetes or pre-diabetes. That means a total of 4.6 million people are now diagnosed with diabetes in the UK, while a further 6.3 million struggle with non-diabetic hyperglycaemia, which is also known as pre-diabetes. And with the charity predicting that a further 1.3 million people are still undiagnosed, the stats are the highest ever recorded.

But what exactly is diabetes and what does it do to the body? Appearing on Lorraine, Dr Amir Khan explained, "There's several different types of diabetes but there are two main ones.

"Type one diabetes occurs usually in younger people or children. It's an autoimmune condition where your immune system attacks the pancreas - that's the organ that makes the hormone insulin - and it stops it from making insulin. So your blood sugars go up because the insulin is not there to counteract them and then you get type on diabetes."

The more common form of diabetes is type two, he explained, which usually affects adults and is caused by a combination of genetics and lifestyle factors. "You are making enough insulin but what's happened over time because of those things [your genetics and lifestyle choices] is that your body's not responding to the insulin as it should do," he explained. "So your sugars go up even though the insulin is trying to work hard to bring them down."

But there has recently been a massive influx in people being diagnosed with pre-diabetes, which is a pre-cursor to developing type two diabetes, and it's especially dangerous as there are hardly any symptoms.

The expert shared, "Pre-diabetes; that's when your sugars are creeping up and it might be because, again, you've become resistant to the insulin but they're not high enough to call it diabetes. That's the time to catch these things, to try and bring everything down."

So with symptoms for type one, type two and pre-diabetes often going unnoticed or overlooked, what do you need to look out for? Dr Amir explains, "Symptoms for type one and type two diabetes do overlap; tired all the time, drinking a lot of water, passing a lot of urine, lots of infections. All of that can mean that you have diabetes. I would see a doctor if you've got any of those symptoms."

The good news is, if you do find that you're struggling with pre-diabetes or type two diabetes, there are a handful of lifestyle changes you can make to manage your symptoms and reduce the impact they have on your life, Dr Amir says.

"I've got five pillars I always talk to my patients with diabetes about," he said. "Number one is a good balanced diet full of plants, and if you are going to eat meat, fish is the thing to go for." He also says that berries and walnuts are your 'best friends' when it comes to diet, as they're rich in fibre, antioxidants, and healthy fats.

Regular movement is also incredibly important, Dr Amir says. "Find something you enjoy doing and do it every day," is his recommendation, whether that means you try out the viral walking yoga trend, or enjoy convenient, cheap and effective exercises at home.

His third tip is to get good quality sleep. "This is so hard for so many people, but seven hours a night," he says. "Even one night of bad sleep can push your sugars up and link your insulin resistance. So, over time, your insulin works less efficiently if you're not sleeping well.

"Get outside in nature - you know I love this! People are more active when they're outside, but their stress levels come down. Stress hormones like cortisol have been linked to insulin resistance and type two diabetes, so get outside." There are plenty of other ways to lower your cortisol levels too, though getting outside is one of the easiest, fastest and cheapest.

And last but not least, he urges people to enjoy social connections. He explains, "Socials connections, face to face, talk to people. It's really good for your brain but it's good for your stress and that helps your insulin work better."

If you have any symptoms Dr Amir mentioned, he says to see a doctor so you can be screened for pre-diabetes and diabetes. Then, if a diagnosis comes back from that, focus on incorporating his five top tips into your daily routine - and to help with that tricky third tip of getting enough sleep, we've compiled 32 tried and tested ways to improve your sleep so you can nod off with ease.