Michigan energy helps in fight against disease
November is National Diabetes Awareness Month
Nov. 5, 2025
The numbers represent real people—in this case, millions of Michiganders.
The stats are staggering:
- Nearly three million (35%) Michigan adults have pre-diabetes.
- Approximately 987,200 (11%) of Michigan adults have diagnosed diabetes, with another almost 60,000 diagnosed every year.
- Diagnosed diabetes among Michiganders costs an estimated $13.3 billion, including $3.4 billion in estimated indirect costs from lost productivity.
Diabetes also contributes to increased risk of heart disease, kidney failure, amputation and blindness, according to the American Diabetes Association.
According to the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the two most common forms of diabetes are:
- Type 1: The immune system attacks and destroys insulin-producing cells in the pancreas and affects approximately 10% of those diagnosed with diabetes.
- Type 2: This is the most common type of diabetes, where the body doesn’t make enough insulin and/or the body’s cells don’t respond normally to the insulin.
While Type 2 diabetes often can be managed through diet, exercise and medication, there is no cure for diabetes, according to the CDC.
“Most of us know someone who has this disease, underscoring the importance of working together to continue to manage it while striving to find a cure.”
—Kirstie Staelens, Enbridge senior advisor of community engagement in Michigan
As researchers strive to find a cure, they have a behind-the-scenes partner: Enbridge’s Line 5 pipeline.
“Michiganders most often associate Line 5 with providing propane for heat,” said Kirstie Staelens, Enbridge’s senior advisor for community engagement in Michigan.
“Line 5 also transports natural gas liquids (NGLs) and light crude oil—the building blocks for thousands of items, including the diagnostic tools and medications that help in the fight against diabetes. Petroleum products really do help improve our daily lives and many people are unaware of that connection.”
Glucose meters and monitors, test strips, insulin pens and insulin pumps are among the resources for which light crude and NGLs play a critical role in their manufacture.
In recognition of November as National Diabetes Awareness Month, the American Diabetes Association encourages everyone to understand the common symptoms of diabetes.
They typically include:
- Frequent urination, excessive thirst and hunger, even though you’re eating
- Extreme fatigue, blurry vision
- Cuts and bruises slow to heal
- Weight loss, even though you’re eating (Type 1)
- Tingling, pain, or numbness in the hands/feet (Type 2)
Across the U.S., more than 38 million Americans, or about 11% of the population, have diabetes.
More than 29% of Americans over the age of 65 are diabetic.
Learn more about this disease and what actions you can take.
