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Fatigue can be a key warning sign of type 2 diabetes, but it's so easy to brush off as inconsequential. Furthermore, other subtle signs of the condition may go unchecked too. Could you have

the condition? You may have heard of diabetes, but do you really know the nuts and bolts of how it works? For one reason or another, the pancreas – an organ that hides behind the stomach –

starts malfunctioning.

The pancreas either can't make enough of the hormone insulin, or the insulin it does make doesn't work properly.

Diabetes UK explained you're more at risk of this happening if you:

Whenever you take a bite of something to eat - regardless of what it is – the carbohydrates are transformed into glucose, a type of sugar.

Insulin then acts as the key allowing glucose into the body's cells, so it can be used up as an energy source.

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This explains why a person with diabetes will feel fatigued - their body can't use the energy from the food they're eating.

Instead of being used up by the body's cells, glucose remains stuck in the bloodstream.

All this sugar in the bloodstream really isn't good for the blood vessels, or other body parts for that matter.

If there's a lot of sugar in the blood, damaged blood vessels can lead to less blood being transported to the penis.

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Should not enough blood reach the penis, sensation will be lost, and there will be difficulty with getting an erection.

Erectile dysfunction is also known as impotence, which may mean you can't get or keep an erection.

Early warning signs can include losing the morning erection, which can be down to:

Pills such as Viagra and Cialis can cause heart problems, so it's not an easy fix.

If diabetes is the cause of erectile dysfunction, then only more damage will be done to your health the longer it's left untreated.

Examples include: kidney problems, foot and eye problems, a stroke and heart attack.

The earliest warning signs of type 2 diabetes, most commonly missed are:

Diabetes UK warned that people could be suffering from the condition for up to a decade before they finally see their GP to get tested.

The easiest way to check whether or not you have diabetes is to speak to your GP.

They can arrange a simple blood test that can check your glucose levels in your blood.

From there, you will find out if you have the condition or not, and how best to manage it.

Whatever you do, if you're concerned you might have diabetes, don't put off seeing a doctor.

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