When the pancreas doesn’t create enough insulin, it’s known as type 1 diabetes, juvenile diabetes, or insulin-dependent diabetes. Insulin is a hormone required to facilitate glucose transport into cells to generate energy.
Factors, including genes and viruses, may cause type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes can develop in adults, even though it is more common in children and adolescents.
Type 1 diabetes is still untreatable, despite the efforts of researchers. The goal of treatment is to keep blood sugar levels under control using insulin, diet, and other dietary and lifestyle changes.
Let’s find out the diabetes symptoms & causes of type 1.
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Estimated reading time: 9 minutes
What Is Diabetes Type 1?
Type 1 diabetes is a lifetime (chronic) illness in which the blood sugar (glucose) level is abnormally high.
Your body is a fuel-burning machine, and sugar, also known as glucose, is the primary fuel it uses. However, in persons with diabetes, the body’s ability to retain and utilize sugar for energy is impaired. As a result, sugar levels in the blood rise, posing major health risks such as blindness and nerve damage. Let’s talk about type 1 diabetes, which is a type of diabetes.
That your immune system, which is supposed to protect you, turns against you. In this situation, the immune system targets the insulin-producing cells in the pancreas. Insulin is a hormone that aids in the transport of sugar into cells. It’s held there until your body requires it for energy. Sugar can’t get into your cells if you don’t have enough insulin, so it builds up in your bloodstream.
What Is The Best Way To Diagnose Type 1 Diabetes?
The earliest indicators are usually extreme thirst or exhaustion. You can gain weight without intending to, or you might experience numbness or tingling in your hands or feet. Your body can’t use sugar for energy if your blood sugar is already quite high, so it uses fat instead.
Diabetic ketoacidosis arises as a result of this. You’ll have a fruity breath as if you’ve just had a fruit salad. Your breathing will become faster, and you may become nauseated. To determine if you have type 1 diabetes, your doctor will do a blood sugar test.
A fasting blood glucose test is one that is performed when you haven’t eaten anything. When you have type 1 diabetes, you must take insulin to compensate for the lack of insulin produced by your body. Because insulin is only accessible as an injection, you’ll either have to learn how to give yourself a shot every day or wear a pump that continuously administers insulin to your body.
How To Manage Diabetes Type 1?
Managing diabetes also entails keeping an eye on your diet to avoid consuming too much or too little sugar all at once. You should also monitor your blood sugar levels on a regular basis and track them over time. Type 1 diabetes is a chronic illness that you can manage and live with for the rest of your life.
The key to keeping healthy with diabetes is to work closely with your medical team. Test your blood sugar at home, and have your A1c levels checked by your doctor at least once every three to six months. This test determines how well you manage your blood sugar over time. Regular cholesterol, blood pressure, and renal tests should also be done at your doctor’s office.
At least once a year, see an eye doctor, and every six months, see a dentist. Check your feet on a daily basis for skin sores that you may not be able to detect due to nerve impairment. Also, have your feet examined twice a year by a podiatrist or your primary care physician.
Call your doctor right away if you’re experiencing signs like exhaustion, frequent urination, blurred vision, foot sores, numbness or tingling, or a fast heartbeat.
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Diabetes Type 1 Causes
Diabetes type 1 can strike at any age. Children, teens, and young adults are the most commonly affected.
Insulin is a hormone generated by specific cells in the pancreas known as beta cells. The pancreas is a gland located beneath and behind the stomach. Insulin is required to transport glucose (blood sugar) into cells. Glucose is stored and used for energy inside the cells. Beta cells in people with type 1 diabetes produce very little or no insulin.
Glucose builds up in the bloodstream instead of flowing into the cells when there isn’t enough insulin. Hyperglycemia is the accumulation of glucose in the blood. Glucose cannot be used by the body as a source of energy. Type 1 diabetes symptoms develop as a result of this.
Type 1 diabetes has an etiology that is unknown. It’s most likely an autoimmune disease. This is a syndrome in which the immune system assaults and destroys healthy body tissue by mistake.
An infection or another trigger in type 1 diabetes causes the body to assault the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. Your parents’ susceptibility to acquiring autoimmune disorders, such as type 1 diabetes, can be passed down to you.
Diabetes Type 1 Symptoms
1. High Sugar In The Blood
The signs listed below could be the initial symptoms of type 1 diabetes. They can also happen if your blood sugar is too high.
- Being extremely thirsty
- Feeling peckish?
- Feeling exhausted all of the time
- Having a hazy vision
- Feeling tingling or numbness in your feet?
- Despite an increased hunger, you can lose weight.
- Urinating more frequently (including urinating at night or bedwetting in children who were dry overnight before)
These critical warning symptoms may be the earliest indicators of type 1 diabetes in others. They can also occur when blood sugar levels are really high (diabetic ketoacidosis):
- Rapid, deep breathing
- Skin and mouth that is dry
- Face flushed
- Fruity odor on the breath
- Nausea and vomiting, as well as a difficulty drinking fluids
- Stomach ache
2. Blood Sugars Level Are Low
In persons with diabetes who are using insulin, low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) can develop quickly. When a person’s blood sugar level falls below 70 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL), or 3.9 millimoles per liter (mmol/L), symptoms frequently emerge. Keep an eye out for:
- Headaches
- Hunger
- Irritability and nervousness
- A fast heartbeat (palpitations)
- Shaking
- Sweatings
- Weakness
- Diabetes can lead to major health problems and, as a result, a slew of other signs over time.
Diabetes Type 1 Exams and Assessments
Blood Test
The following blood tests are used to detect diabetes:
Diabetes is diagnosed when the fasting blood glucose level is 126 mg/dL (7 mmol/L) or greater at two different periods.
If your blood glucose level is 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) or greater and you experience symptoms such as increased thirst, urination, and exhaustion, you may have diabetes.
(A fasting test is required to establish this.)
Oral Glucose Tolerance Test
If your blood glucose level is 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L) or greater two hours after drinking a special sugar drink, you have diabetes.
Diabetes is diagnosed when the hemoglobin A1C (A1C) test results are 6.5 percent or higher.
Ketone Testing
Ketone testing is also employed on occasion. A urine or blood sample is used for the ketone test. Ketone testing can be used to see if a person with type 1 diabetes has had ketoacidosis. Typically, testing is carried out as follows:
- When blood sugar levels exceed 240 mg/dL (13.3 mmol/L),
- During a respiratory disease, a heart attack, or a stroke during pregnancy, if nausea and vomiting occur
The checkups and tests listed below will assist you and your health care provider in monitoring your diabetes and preventing diabetes-related problems:
- Examine the skin and bones on your feet and legs for any signs of infection.
- Check to see whether your toes are becoming numb (diabetic nerve disease).
- At least once a year, have your blood pressure checked. The target blood pressure should be 140/90 mmHg or lower.
- If your diabetes is under control, do you get an A1C test every six months? If your diabetes is not well controlled, have you had the test done every three months?
- Once a year, have your cholesterol and triglyceride levels examined.
- Once a year, have your kidneys tested to ensure they are in good operating order.
- Microalbuminuria and serum creatinine levels are among the tests performed.
- At least once a year, or more frequently if you have signs of diabetic eye problems, see your eye doctor.
- Every six months, visit the dentist for a comprehensive dental cleaning and exam. Ascertain that your dentist and hygienist are aware of your diabetes.
Last But Not Least
Type 1 diabetes cannot be prevented, as far as we know. It can be controlled by maintaining a doctor’s advice. So you must know the diabetes symptoms type 1.
Before type 1, your kidneys will flush out glucose. This causes frequent urination and is a common sign of diabetes. You should also be on the lookout for excessive thirst, frequent trips to the bathroom, and weight loss that don’t seem to be intentional.
The signs and symptoms usually appear in a matter of days or weeks. Among youngsters, this is especially true. The sooner you consult a doctor if you detect any symptoms, the better.
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