Why Is It Called Diabetes Mellitus?

Diabetes originates from Ancient Greek, meaning a “siphon”. Aretus the

Cappadocian – a Greek physician during the second century A.D. – named the ailment diabainein. This described sufferers, who were passing too much water – like a siphon. The word developed into “diabetes” from the English adoption of the Medieval Latin “diabete”.

In 1675, Thomas Willis attached mellitus to the name, although it is usually only called diabetes. Mel in Latin means “honey”; the urine and blood diabetes sufferers contain an excessive amount of glucose, and glucose is sweet like honey. Diabetes mellitus could literally translate to: “siphoning off sweet water”.

In ancient China people discovered that ants were drawn to some people’s urine, as it was sweet. The term “Sweet Urine Disease” was invented.