Diabetes Type I

Intense thirst and hunger are classic signs of diabetes.

Intense hunger is a sign of Diabetes I.

Type 1 diabetes is rare in most Asian, African and American Indian populations and more common in Caucasians.

Relatives of people with Type 1 Diabetes, as well as the sufferers themselves, run a 6% risk of developing celiac disease.

According to the "Rotterdam Study" reported in the journal Neurology, diabetes mellitus may not only damage the function of the eyes, limbs, kidneys, and heart – it may also impair the function of the brain and hasten the process of senile dementia.

The Rotterdam Study is a large, ongoing prospective analysis which tracked dysglycemia and dementia in over 6,000 individuals over age 55.  The researchers found that diabetes mellitus nearly doubles the risk of developing both vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease.  Diagnosis of diabetes was based on World Health Organization criteria using a glucose tolerance test.

A related editorial called Alzheimer's a possible "brain-type diabetes".  Besides damaging important blood vessel networks and increasing the risk of small "silent" strokes deep inside the brain, dysglycemia may be directly involved in the development of the neurofibrillary tangles, the clumping of nerves and fiber tissue inside the brain characteristic of Alzheimer's.

The researchers noted that advanced glycation end products (AGE), proteins damaged by chronically high blood sugar levels, are commonly found inside these tangles.  "In brains of AD patients the receptor for AGE appears overexpressed," they noted.  "Activation of this receptor leads to increased oxidative stress that may result in cellular damage."

Diabetes also disrupts insulin signaling to other cells in the body.  This altered signaling may increase the activity of a neuronal enzyme that stimulates phosphorylated tau proteins to build up, a key trigger mechanism cited as one of the earliest signs of Alzheimer's.

NOTE: This study strongly suggests the important potential role of glycation products and insulin response, not just glucose levels, in causing degenerative disease.

Relatives of people with Type 1 Diabetes, as well as the sufferers themselves, run a risk of developing celiac disease.  The resulting inflammation and tissue damage reduces vitamin B12 absorption and may lead to Pernicious anemia, which occurs in approximately 1 in 50 adults with Type 1 Diabetes.

Diabetic retinopathy will occur in 90% of persons with type 1 diabetes.

Signs of Type 1 Diabetes, as it progresses, may include dry skin, blurred vision, unexplained weight loss and a thin, malnourished appearance.

If you have type 1 diabetes, and in some cases if you have type 2 diabetes, you need insulin injections to manage your blood sugar (glucose).

Niacinamide improves ATP mitochondrial production in the face of diabetogenic chemicals and thus allows Islet cells to stay alive.  The Type I honeymoon period can just be extended 12-18 months and insulin requirements may be less.