17 SECONDS

Seventeen seconds. It's two breaths. It's barely enough time for the first verse of your favorite song to kick in. Still, every 17 seconds in the United States, someone is diagnosed with diabetes.

Every 17 seconds someone learns they have a disease that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says is the leading cause of kidney failure, non-traumatic lower limb amputation and blindness in adults.

Every 17 seconds, someone learns they have a condition that is a major cause of heart disease and stroke.

And every 17 seconds someone learns they are now fighting the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S.

In fact, the CDC says that the number of diabetic adults age 18 years and older in the U.S. has more than tripled between 1980 and 2008. Today, diabetes affects 25.8 million people in this country — and 7 million of them don't even know it.

The epidemic threatens to transform our communities and rob our children, friends and families of their good health — and their lives.

That's why we're launching a collaborative effort that brings together leading diabetes and health experts, celebrities and organizations like the American Diabetes Association's Stop Diabetes campaign. We hope to prompt you, our readers, to take action. We want you to share this information and mobilize your loved ones to learn more about diabetes. Our feature stories, photo galleries and tips will make it easier to take meaningful action in your life and through your social networks.

Check back every week as we keep you up to date on preventing and living with diabetes.

Because in the time it's taken you to read this, another three people have been diagnosed with diabetes. And as far as we're concerned, that's three too many.