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.
- Some people have certain genes (traits passed on from parent to child) that make them more likely to develop type 1 diabetes.
- However, many of them won’t go on to have type 1 diabetes even if they have the genes.
- A trigger in the environment, such as a virus, may also play a part in developing type 1 diabetes.
Diet and lifestyle habits don’t cause type 1 diabetes.
Can type 1 diabetics live a full life?
People with type 1 diabetes are living longer – Harvard Health Better blood sugar control may be the key to longer survival Ninety years ago, type 1 diabetes was a death sentence: half of people who developed it died within two years; more than 90% were dead within five years.
- Thanks to the introduction of insulin therapy in 1922, and numerous advances since then, many people with type 1 diabetes now live into their 50s and beyond.
- But survival in this group still falls short of that among people without diabetes.
- Shows that at the age of 20, individuals with type 1 diabetes on average lived 12 fewer years than 20-year-olds without it.
showed that people with type 1 diabetes with better blood sugar control lived longer than those with poorer blood sugar control.
What is life like with type 1 diabetes?
Type 1 diabetes is a chronic condition in which the pancreas makes little to no insulin. Its treatments include insulin therapy, blood sugar monitoring, dietary awareness, and exercise. Generally, symptoms include frequent urination, increased appetite, exhaustion, and vision issues.
Which parent passes on diabetes?
Diabetes is a hereditary disease, which means that the child is at high risk of developing diabetes Diabetes is a hereditary disease, which means that the child is at high risk of developing diabetes compared to the general population at the given age. Diabetes can be inherited from either mother or father. The child’s risk increases:
If the father has type 1 diabetes, the risk of the child developing diabetes is 1 in 17. If the mother has type 1 diabetes and:
The child was born before she is 25 years old, then the risk is 1 in 25. The child was born after she is 25 years old, the child’s risk is 1 in 100.
If the father and mother develop diabetes before the age of 11 years, the child’s risk is between 1 in 10 and 1 in 4, respectively. If the person has diabetes along with thyroid disease, poorly working adrenal gland, and immune system disorder, the child’s risk of developing type 1 diabetes is 1 in 2.
Even if diabetes run in families, it is possible to delay or prevent type 2 diabetes in children or youth by following a healthy lifestyle. Type 2 diabetes can result from a combination of genetic and environmental factors. The risk of developing type 2 diabetes is higher in kids if the mother rather than father has diabetes.
If the father has type 2 diabetes, the risk factor is about 30%. If the mother has type 2 diabetes, the risk factor is slightly higher. If both parents have diabetes, the risk factor increases to about 70%.
Mutation in any gene involved in controlling glucose levels can increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, which include genes that control:
The production of glucose. The production and regulation of insulin, How glucose levels are sensed in the body.
Genes associated with type 2 diabetes risk include:
TCF7L2, which affects insulin secretion and glucose production ABCC8, which helps regulate insulin CAPN10, which is associated with type 2 diabetes risk in Mexican-Americans GLUT2, which helps move glucose into the pancreas GCGR, a glucagon hormone involved in glucose regulation
Other factors that increase the risk of type 2 diabetes include:
Obesity Sedentary lifestyle Poor dietary practices Smoking Elevated blood pressure History of gestational diabetes
Lifestyle choices that affect the development of type 2 diabetes include:
Lack of exercise : Physical activity has several benefits, including reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes. Unhealthy meal planning choices: A meal high in fat and lacking fiber can increase the probability of type 2 diabetes. Obesity: Being overweight increases the likelihood of insulin resistance and can also lead to many other health conditions.
Can fasting cause type 1 diabetes?
– The researchers were prompted in their endeavor by older studies suggesting that fasting for a short period of time increases oxidative stress and the production of free radicals. Oxidative stress and excessive levels of free radicals have been suggested to speed up the aging process and to damage our DNA, raising the risk of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurodegeneration.
To find out whether intermittent fasting does indeed generate free radicals, Bonassa and her colleagues placed healthy, adult rats on the diet for a period of 3 months. During this time, the researchers measured and monitored the rodents’ insulin levels and function, their body weight, and their free radical levels.
At the end of the dieting period, the rats had lost weight, as expected. However, the distribution of their body fat changed unexpectedly. The amount of fat tissue in the rodents’ abdomen increased. Belly fat has been shown by recent studies to be deeply linked with type 2 diabetes, with some research even suggesting a molecular mechanism through which the former may lead to the latter.