More than 21 million Americans have diabetes, but about a third of them do not realize they have it. Symptoms often do not appear until complications begin to set in.

Some of the most common factors associated with the development of diabetes include:

• Increased hunger (polyphagia)
• Increased thirst (polydipsia)
• Increased urination (polyuria)
• Fatigue
• Blurred vision
• Rapid, unplanned weight loss
• Cuts or sores that are slow to heal
• Frequent infections, such as urinary tract infections and yeast infections

In addition to possibly developing diabetes, children who are overweight or obese can experience other health problems. These include:

• Problems with bones or joints
  
  
• Shortness of breath during exercise or sports, increasing the risk of asthma
  
  
• Sleep apnea
  
  
• Early maturity, including a younger age at puberty, irregular menstrual cycles and excessive growth of body hair
  
  
• High blood pressure
  
  
• Insulin resistance
  
  
• Dyslipidemia (unhealthy levels of cholesterol and other blood fats)
  
  
• Liver problems
  
  
• Depression due to poor body image
  
  
• Pseudotumor cerebri (this rare condition, not always related to obesity, presents with increased intracranial pressure, leading to headaches that could cause blindness)