Stage 1. This stage, defined as insulin resistance, is where muscle, fat, and liver cells become resistant to insulin and have trouble bringing glucose into the cell. But the pancreas compensates for this by producing more insulin, which helps keep blood sugar levels within normal range.
Type 1 diabetes is a lifelong disease and there is no cure. Tight control of blood glucose can prevent or delay diabetes complications. But these problems can occur, even in people with good diabetes control.
Overview. Type 1 diabetes, once known as juvenile diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes, is a chronic condition. In this condition, the pancreas makes little or no insulin. Insulin is a hormone the body uses to allow sugar (glucose) to enter cells to produce energy.
If left untreated, type-1 diabetes is a life-threatening condition. It's essential that treatment is started early. Diabetes can't be cured, but treatment aims to keep your blood glucose levels as normal as possible and control your symptoms, to prevent health problems developing later in life.
What Causes Type 1 Diabetes? Type 1 diabetes is thought to be caused by an autoimmune reaction (the body attacks itself by mistake). This reaction destroys the cells in the pancreas that make insulin, called beta cells. This process can go on for months or years before any symptoms appear.
Recent estimates of the reduction in life expectancy caused by type 1 diabetes vary from 7.6 to 19 years. Life expectancy estimates for individuals with type 1 diabetes in these reports ranged from approximately 65 years of age to 72 years of age.
Type 1 diabetes is considered worse than type 2 because it is an autoimmune disease, so there isn't a cure. Also, in a 2010 report⁴ from the UK, it's estimated that the life expectancy of people with type 2 diabetes can be reduced by up to 10 years, while type 1 can reduce life expectancy by 20 years or more.
Blood tests used to diagnose type 1 and type 2 diabetes include fasting blood sugar, a hemoglobin A1C test, and a glucose tolerance test. The A1C test measures the average blood sugar level over the past few months. The glucose tolerance test measures blood sugar after a sugary drink is given.
Type 1 diabetes is caused by the body's immune system damaging the pancreas and, therefore, no insulin can be manufactured by the body. In Type 1 diabetes, the body fails to make insulin. In Type 2 diabetes, the body either develops a resistance to insulin or not enough insulin is produced to lower the blood sugars.
Currently, there isn't a cure for type 1 diabetes. However, what we know about the condition is constantly evolving, new technologies and medicines are being developed, and researchers are making important breakthroughs. Right now, people of all ages are leading full, healthy lives with type 1 diabetes. You can too!
The exact cause of most types of diabetes is unknown. In all cases, sugar builds up in the bloodstream. This is because the pancreas doesn't produce enough insulin. Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes may be caused by a combination of genetic or environmental factors.
For people with diabetes, blood sugar can spike. Dehydration—less water in your body means your blood sugar is more concentrated. Nose spray—some have chemicals that trigger your liver to make more blood sugar. Gum disease—it's both a complication of diabetes and a blood sugar spiker.
There is no cure for type 2 diabetes. But it may be possible to reverse the condition to a point where you do not need medication to manage it and your body does not suffer ill effects from having blood sugar levels that are too high.
The pancreas produces very little or no insulin at all in people with type 1 diabetes. For this reason, everyone with type 1 diabetes will require insulin. Insulin is given under the skin, either as a shot or continuously with an insulin pump.
Stress alone doesn't cause diabetes. But there is some evidence that there may be a link between stress and the risk of type 2 diabetes. Our researchers think that high levels of stress hormones might stop insulin-producing cells in the pancreas from working properly and reduce the amount of insulin they make.
People With Diabetes Can Live Longer by Meeting Their Treatment Goals. Life expectancy can be increased by 3 years or in some cases as much as 10 years. At age 50, life expectancy- the number of years a person is expected to live- is 6 years shorter for people with type 2 diabetes than for people without it.
Type 1 and type 2 diabetes can have very serious side effects if they are not diagnosed or managed well. One is not better or worse than the other. Both conditions require careful and mindful management. If your cells do not get the sugar they need to function, they will begin to die.
You can drink alcohol if you have type 1 diabetes, but be careful how much you drink. Drinking too much may cause you to have a hypoglycaemia (hypo), possibly as much as 24 hours later. Talk to your diabetes team about how to drink alcohol safely.
Potatoes are a versatile and delicious vegetable that can be enjoyed by everyone, including people with diabetes. However, because of their high carb content, you should limit portion sizes, always eat the skin, and choose low GI varieties, such as Carisma and Nicola.
Lemon juice significantly lowered the mean blood glucose concentration peak by 30% (p < 0.01) and delayed it more than 35 min (78 vs. 41 min with water, p < 0.0001).