Overview
Type 1 Diabetes is diabetes which affects the insulin cells in your body, you can simply say it insulin-dependent diabetes. It is a condition when your immune system gets disturbed and destroys the insulin-producing cells in your pancreas causing the high blood sugar level. The common insulin-making cells are Beta cells. It has another name juvenile diabetes because it is mostly diagnosed in a group of people who are children and young. Mostly they are below the ’40s. It is also known as Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus.
Symptoms of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus
Type 1 diabetes signs and symptoms can appear suddenly and may include the following,
- Increased thirst or polydipsia
- Frequent urination or polyuria
- Bed-wetting in children who did not wet the bed during the night in past
- Extreme hunger or polyphagia
- Unintended weight loss
- Anorexia
- Irritability or other mood changes
- Blurring of vision
- Fatigue and weakness
- Nerve impairment
- Amputation of leg
- Edema of hands or feet
- Kidney diseases
- Liver impairment
In Type 1 diabetes insulin administration is the best therapy for treatment and it can be obsolete by complete protection and therapy.
Symptoms that are critical:
There are some symptoms that need an emergency check-up to the doctor and should not ignore.
- If your body is shaking
- Rapid breathing is also a serious one
- Having pain in the belly
- the fruity smell of your breath
- Loss of consciousness
Causes of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus
The exact cause of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus is unknown but a lot of factors can be responsible for type 1 diabetes mellitus like genetic factors, pancreatitis, a tumor of the pancreas, etc. These factors are responsible for type 1 diabetes. Some of them are
- Genetics
- Viral infection
- Environmental factors
- Pancreatitis
- Tumor of pancreas
- Physical stress
- History of the family
- Age
Diabetes can lead to:
Diabetes has many effects on the body. It can cause many severe effects on your body by reducing the blood sugar level. This can further lead to:
- Dehydration
- Diabetic ketoacidosis (The most critical one)
- Weight loss
- Damage to eyes
- Kidney disorder
- Heart attack
The main reason of kidney disorder and heart attack in diabetes is the medicines you are using to cure this disease. These medicine affects your kidney and heart and causes damage to them.
Role of Insulin Hormone:
The destruction of beta cells produces little or no insulin. Insulin is a hormone that lowers the blood sugar level by transporting it into the adipose tissues or muscles. Insulin allows you to absorb the energy from the food you eat.
The pancreas’ beta cells secrete insulin into the blood circulation. Insulin circulates in the blood, allowing the sugar to enter your cells or tissues. Insulin lowers the amount of glucose in your blood.
As your blood sugar level declines, so does the secretion of insulin from your pancreas.
If insulin is not present, the above mechanism will impair and glucose stays in your bloodstream.
Role of glucose:
Glucagon causes the liver to engage in glycogenolysis: converting stored glycogen into glucose, which is released into the bloodstream. High blood glucose levels, on the other hand, stimulate the release of insulin. Insulin allows glucose to be taken up and used by insulin-dependent tissues.
Glucose is the main source of energy for all the cells that make up the muscles, tissues, and other organs. Liver and food are the two major sources of glucose.
Sugar is absorbed into the blood circulation, where it enters into the cells with the help of the insulin. Your liver stores extra glucose as glycogen form. When your glucose level is too low, such as when you have not eaten, the liver breaks down the stored glycogen into the glucose to keep the glucose levels within a normal range. Thus, glucose is stored as well as maintained.
Type 1 diabetes complications:
Type 1 diabetes complications can affect the major organs in your body including blood vessels, heart, nerves, kidneys, and eyes. Normal blood sugar levels can dramatically reduce the risk of many serious complications.
1- Nerve Damage or neuropathy
Additional Glucose damage the blood capillaries that nourish the nerve. Due to the malnourishment of nerve, tingling, numbness, or burning can produce.
2- Kidney Damage or nephropathy
Extra glucose damaged the tiny blood vessels that filter the wastes of your body. Diabetes Mellitus can damage this fine filtering excretory system. Severe damage can lead to kidney failure or irreversible end-stage kidney failure.
3- Heart and blood vessels damaged
Diabetes drastically increases the risk of various CVS problems, including chest pain or angina, hypertension, heart attack, heart failure, stroke, and narrowing of the arteries (atherosclerosis).
4- Eye damage or Retinopathy
Diabetes Mellitus also damage the blood vessels of the retina (known as diabetic retinopathy), potentially causing Blindness. Diabetes also increases the risk of other serious vision conditions, such as cataracts and glaucoma.
5- Pregnancy Complications
High blood sugar levels or type 1 diabetes can be harmful to both the mother and the baby. The risk of miscarriage, stillbirth, and birth defects increases when diabetes is untreated. Diabetics mothers are at a high risk of diabetic ketoacidosis, retinopathy, preeclampsia
Diagnosis of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus
People are diagnosed if they meet one of the following criteria:
- fasting blood sugar > 126 mg/dL on two separate tests
- random blood sugar > 200 mg/dL, along with symptoms of diabetes
- hemoglobin A1c > 6.5 on two separate tests
These diagnoses are the same as in Type 2 Diabetes. Therefore, there always remains confusion in both types of diabetes.
Treatment:
Type 1 diabetes mellitus can be cured or can get improvement in many ways. Such as,
- Insulin injections
- Metformin
- Vaccines
- Medicines
- Diet
- Exercise
HP Thoughts: If you’re an adult and feel that you might have contracted Type 1 diabetes, then go over our article to know what to do — Type 1 Diabetes Causes in Adulthood.
Frequently asked questions:
1. What Is The Difference Between Type 1 And Type 2 Diabetes?
Diabetes mellitus is of two types i.e type 1 Diabetes and type 2 diabetes mellitus. What is the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus? The major differences are
- Type 1 occurs before the age of 40s, meaning it affects adult life. While type 2 occurs after the age of 40s.
- Type 1 occurs due to deficiency of insulin hormone, while type 2 is actually an insensitivity of insulin receptors.
- Treatment of type 1 is insulin therapy and type 2 needs just weight loss, dietary restrictions, and exercise.
2. What is type 1 diabetes and how do you get it?
Type 1 diabetes mellitus affects the adults before the age of 40s, due to the autoimmune destruction of beta cells or deficient produced of insulin. Type 1 diabetes also known as Juvenile Diabetes. Due to lack of insulin hormone, blood glucose level remains elevated and extra glucose begins to deposit in the peripheral organs. Therefore, the main purpose to get rid of it is to lower the blood glucose level. Insulin therapy is a best-recommended treatment for diabetes. Insulin tablets or injections are given to the patients which store the blood glucose in muscles and keep it balanced.
3. What are the first signs of Type 1 Diabetes?
Type 1 Diabetes mellitus is a disease of youngsters before the 40s, due to decreased production of insulin hormone which is the most important glucose-lowering agent in blood. When an individual develops glucose in the early stages, he begins to feel a few symptoms such as fatigue, restlessness, exercise intolerance, or confusion. These are general symptoms that are mild initially and are not much suggestive, therefore, diagnosis of diabetes mostly late occurs. When the patient checks his blood sugar level, diabetes is confirmed because random blood glucose is greater than 200mg/dl.
4. Is Type 1 diabetes serious?
Diabetes Mellitus is not much serious if it is diagnosed early and treated early. If the patient is taking proper insulin therapy 0.75 to 1.0U/kg daily, along with the proper dietary care, it can be cured. Diabetic’s diet should have 55% carbs, 30% fats (without cholesterol), and 15% proteins. You should quit refined sugars, salty food, and smoking to minimize the risk of heart attack or pulmonary effusion in the future. The prognosis of type 1 diabetes is good, mostly patients recover with proper diet and insulin therapy.
5. How long does a person live with type 1 diabetes?
Men suffering from diabetes have a life span of almost 77 years when we take life expectancy in a healthy individual 88 years. While comparing the same in women the gap is almost 15 to 20 years.
Life expectancy reduces fast when a person is noncompliant and develops complications earlier.
6. Can a child with Type 1 Diabetes live a normal life?
Proper doses of insulin administration to the highly susceptible child can prevent or delay the onset of diabetes. Diabetes in children can lead to some complications like retinopathy, nephropathy, and neuropathy. But these complications occur after 10 to 15 years of initial disease. Almost 100% of the children of Diabetes Mellitus have retinopathy in the future. Some may have myocardial infarction and stroke in the future.
