Type 1 diabetes is a congenital autoimmune disease. It differs from type 2 diabetes, a chronic metabolic disease that is acquired over the course of life through an unhealthy lifestyle. While type 2 diabetes is very much in the public eye and there is a lot of understanding of the symptoms and effects, type 1 diabetes is generally more conscious not yet well trained. Here we reveal the background to congenital diabetes and 4 surprising consequences of the autoimmune disease.
People with type 1 diabetes have high blood sugar levels because their pancreas can produce little or no insulin. The reason for this is an autoimmune disease in which your own immune system attacks and damages the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. Since the body does not have enough insulin to transport the sugar ingested with food from the blood into the cells, the blood sugar level rises. A blood sugar level that is too high in the long term has very negative effects on the health of vessels, organs and nerves.
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Type 1 diabetes: These are the surprising consequences
Anyone suffering from type 1 diabetes has to take the hormone insulin from outside several times a day. The amount of insulin given depends on the severity of the beta cell damage. Congenital diabetes is usually asymptomatic at first. However, once your own immune system has destroyed 80 percent of the beta cells in the pancreas, insulin can no longer be produced in sufficient quantities. Now, at the latest, the classic symptoms of the autoimmune disease become noticeable. This includes:
- fatigue
- strong thirst
- frequent urination
- nausea and vomiting
- dry skin
- the exhaled air smells of acetone
Type 1 diabetes is treated with regular insulin injections. An adapted diet that is as sugar-free as possible also plays an important role in the treatment of the disease. However, some effects of the disease are little known and sometimes surprising.
Consequences of type 1 diabetes
1. Disrupted sleep
Many people with type 1 diabetes suffer from disturbed sleep. This can have several causes. On the one hand, the blood sugar level must also be measured at regular intervals at night. Insulin injections often have to be given later in the evening and at night. In addition, conditions such as very high or very low blood sugar levels ensure that a peaceful, restful sleep is disturbed. The increased urge to urinate in many type 1 diabetics makes it necessary to go to the toilet regularly at night. For many diabetics, sleep is therefore scarce. studies have already shown that restful sleep without interruptions is fundamental to our health. The irregular sleep patterns of people with congenital diabetes can sometimes even make the disease worse.
2. Impaired vision
Too much sugar in the system triggers minute, chronic inflammation. High blood sugar levels then damage blood vessels over the long term. The small vessels of the retina are particularly sensitive to high blood sugar levels. It is not uncommon for the retina to suffer enormous damage from diabetes. Then there is talk of diabetic retinopathy. Since the blood vessels in the retina are damaged, there is no longer sufficient blood flow to the visual cells. This sometimes severely impairs the vision of type 1 diabetics. If the loss of vision is not noticed in time, the retina can be damaged and even lead to complete blindness.
3. Susceptibility to dental disease
One would think that dental health should be in very good shape for people who consume little or no added sugar. In fact, people with diabetes suffer from periodontitis three times more often than people without diabetes. Periodontitis is the medical term for the inflammation of the periodontium. The gums become inflamed and recede from the tooth over time. Teeth then loosen and even fall out in severe cases. The cause of diabetic periodontitis seems to be the weakened immune system, which makes it easier for bacteria to attach themselves to the tooth neck.
4. Bladder weakness
High blood sugar levels can cause bladder irritation. Sugar disrupts and damages nerves responsible for emptying the bladder. Malfunctions follow, in which the disturbed nerves send wrong signals, there is an excessive urge to urinate or droplet incontinence. Another cause of the increased urge to urinate is the increased urine formation caused by sugar. In order to flush excess sugar out of the body, more urine is produced.
