Type 1 Diabetes Facts: Living with Type 1 Diabetes

Type I diabetes is known to be a kind of autoimmune medical condition wherein the pancreas tends to stop producing enough of insulin in the body. Insulin is basically a hormone that is helpful in getting enough of energy from the food which one consumes.

There are about one to two million people in America alone who are currently living with this Type I diabetic condition and around two lakhs of this number are below the age bracket of 20 years and one million are just adults wherein they are above 20 years. This medical condition if not diagnosed and treated on time can turn out to be quite a challenge for the individual wherein it can be difficult to deal with, quite upsetting and fatal as well.

This condition can affect any individual irrespective of age or ethnicity. It can affect either children or adults of varied ages as well. There are certain risk factors for individuals who can be prone to this condition. Those individuals who have a family history of either their parent or sibling suffering from this condition do have a higher risk of developing type I diabetes as well.

As you tend to travel away from the equator the cases of type I diabetes is also on the rise. Even though it is said that there is no known age for getting this condition but it has been identified that there are two kinds of peaks. The first one being any children who come in the age bracket of four to seven years of age and the second peak would involve any children who fall in the age bracket of ten to fourteen years of age.

Causes:

This Type I diabetes is mostly occurring due to the genetic factor involvement but there are certain environmental factors as well which can trigger the occurrence of this condition in an individual. It is said the mostly the body’s own immune system which is said to fight against the harmful infections such as bacteria or virus mistakenly starts to destroy its own insulin producing cells which are present in the pancreas. Once a major number of islet cells get destroyed the body would start to either produce little or in certain cases it would be no insulin at all.

Managing the condition:

The Type I diabetes can be managed by balancing carefully the amount of insulin which is obtained through the use of injections and also ensuring to consume a balanced meal. These insulin injections are mostly for managing of this type I diabetes but it does not cure the condition. It would also not prevent the individual to develop certain conditions arising from diabetes and those are failure of the kidney, temporary or permanent kind of eye blindness, damage caused to the nerves and rise in the cardiovascular failure.

Cure and treating of this condition:

Even though the type I diabetes is considered to be a severe form of diabetic condition the individual still has the ability of leading an active and quality life. This can be done only if one manages the disease just as per the instructions of the doctor and following all of the guidelines laid down by them.

Warning symptoms:

Identification of any disease is a key to get it prevented or managed on a timely basis. The more you delay in identifying the medical condition the more it would damage the other body parts. Few of the warning signs of the type I diabetic condition is an increase in thirst, feeling drowsy, feeling hungry too often, sudden loss of weight, the individual would also encounter changes in their vision, the urine which is sugary, the breath would have a fruity scent to it, frequent case of urination and heavy breathing.

Exercising is known to play an important role when it comes to keeping the diabetes level under control. It is important for everyone to carry out some form of physical activity even when you are not suffering from any condition. Daily aerobic exercise is a must. But first check with the doctor on the type of physical activity which can be carried out. Choose the one which you enjoy such as walking, swimming and then make it part of your daily routine.