What is Type 1 Diabetes

What is Type 1 Diabetes

In type 1 diabetes a person’s pancreas is not able to make enough insulin for the body to
function properly.  Type 1 diabetes is considered an autoimmune disease – the body’s
cells attack the cells in the pancreas that produces insulin either destroying them entirely
or enough of them that there isn’t enough insulin.

People who are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes are often surprised because it is not linked
to lifestyle or a healthy body weight.  As of now, there still is no exact reason that
researchers have found that causes a person to develop type 2 diabetes.  Although there
are risk factors that can increase the chances of someone being diagnosed.

Another name for type 1 diabetes is juvenile diabetes.  The reason for this is because the
majority of people diagnosed with type 1 diabetes are under the age of 25.  There have
been reported cases of patients being diagnosed with the disease much older but those are
exceptions.  There may be a genetic link that causes people to become insulin dependant
but the exact link has yet to be discovered.



Diabetics with type 1 will have to take insulin for the rest of their lives.  The amount of
insulin they take may vary with their diet and weight through the years.  Type 1 diabetics
need to carefully monitor their urine for ketones every morning as they are more likely to
be diagnosed with diabetic ketoacidosis – a serious condition.  This is your body’s way of
telling you it is not getting enough fuel and is using fat cells as energy instead of the food
that is being consumed.

The number of people with type 1 diabetes is relatively small compared to the number of
people who are being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.  The numbers for type 2 diabetes
continue to grow with the obesity rates.