Type 2 diabetes means your blood sugar stays too high for a long time.

Type 2 diabetes means your blood sugar stays too high over time, and doctors check this with two tests: one after you've fasted and another called HbA1c that shows how much sugar has been sticking to your red blood cells over the past few months.

With type 2 diabetes, your body's cells don't respond well to insulin, so sugar stays in your blood instead of getting into cells where it's needed, leading to high blood sugar over time.