What makes Type 1 diabetes different?

Last week we touched on some of the myths/misconceptions about Type 1 diabetes. As I have mentioned in the past, it is similar to Type 2 diabetes in some ways, but also quite different in many other ways.{{more}}

Type 1 diabetes does tend to be diagnosed more in younger people. That is quite true (although as I said last week, it is now more commonly diagnosed in adults than it was in the past). Type 2 diabetes is most often diagnosed in adults. HOWEVER, as the obesity epidemic worsens, more and more children and teenagers are being diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. That is for another week’s discussion though…

One of the hallmarks of Type 1 diabetes is a very high sensitivity to insulin. This means that it only takes a small amount of insulin to cause a drop in blood sugars. People with Type 1 diabetes often need less than a third of insulin used by someone with similar age and build, but having Type 2 diabetes. Whereas folks with Type 2 diabetes may need perhaps 10 units of insulin to drop their blood sugars 50 points, someone with Type 1 diabetes may only need 1 or 2 units to do the same thing.

Part of this insulin sensitivity is related to people with Type 1 diabetes having a relative LACK of their own insulin in production. This is another hallmark of Type 1 diabetes-lack of your own insulin. There is no pill that can MAKE your body produce more when you have Type 1 diabetes. The cells responsible for making insulin have been destroyed, or are so few that the insulin being made is almost non-existent. This is why people with Type 1 diabetes need insulin as treatment.

Given what I described above, it should not surprise you that the “buffer zone,” as it were, for people with Type 1 diabetes, is less than that for folks with Type 2 diabetes, in regard to missing medications. It does not take more than missing a few doses of insulin in a row for someone with Type 1 diabetes to know that something is very, very wrong. Blood sugars tend to climb quickly. Because insulin is not available to help turn sugars into energy, the body starts breaking down muscles for energy instead. Urination picks up and the dehydration makes everything worse. This is what we refer to as diabeticketoacidosis (DKA). It is a very serious condition that can lead to death VERY quickly, if untreated. It happens most often in people with Type 1 diabetes, but can also happen at times in folks with Type 2, if they are very, very sick.

So, as you can see already, Type 1 diabetes is a disease unto itself. It must not ever be treated the same way as Type 2 diabetes, because they are quite different. Until next week, stay safe and healthy Vincies!

Anita Ramsetty, MD endodocs@endocrinehelp.com

Medical Director Endocrine Care Group

www.endocrinehelp.com

Tel: 843-798-4227