Brits are being warned of a change in their toilet habits that is a symptom that they could have diabetes.
Producing more urine or needing to go to the toilet more often is a common symptom of both type one and two diabetes.
The number of people living with diabetes in the UK has now topped five million for the first time, with about 90% having type two.
And an important way of tackling the condition is to be aware of the signs and symptoms.
One symptom is polyuria where people may find themselves urinating frequently and producing more than three litres a day, it's been claimed
Medical website diabetes.co.uk states: “It is one of the main symptoms of diabetes (both type one and type two diabetes) and can lead to severe dehydration, which if left untreated can affect kidney function”.
In diabetes the level of sugar in the blood is abnormally high, so the kidneys cannot reabsorb all the sugar and “some of this excess glucose from the blood ends up in the urine where it draws more water”.
That means larger amounts of urine is produced by the body.
If glucose levels are too high, then the body tries to remedy the situation by removing it from the blood through the kidneys, which means more water is filtered out alongside it.
People are advised to see a doctor if they have excessive urination over several days without any obvious explanation.
Needing to urinate frequently and in large amounts is one of the “4Ts” - symptoms for diabetes, according to Diabetes UK.
The other symptoms are feeling thirsty, tired, and thinner.
Diabetes UK said that were are an estimated 850,000 people that were unaware that they have the condition.
Charity CEO Chris Askew said: “These figures show we’re in the grip of a rapidly escalating crisis.
“Spiralling numbers of people are now living with Type two diabetes and millions are at high risk of developing the condition.
"The fear of serious complications is a life-long reality for millions of people across the UK.”
There are two main types of diabetes. Type one is when the body’s immune system attacks and destroys the cells that produce insulin, and type two is the most common, where the body doesn’t produce enough insulin, or the body’s cells fail to react to insulin.
