Type 1 Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes is usually diagnosed in children or young adults, although it can occur at any age. Roughly 1 in every 400–600 children and adolescents has diabetes.1
Formerly known as juvenile diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes, type 1 diabetes occurs when the body’s immune system destroys the pancreas’s beta cells—the cells which create insulin.1 As a result, the body makes very little or no insulin of its own.
A person with type 1 diabetes must use one of the following methods every day to take insulin:2
• an insulin pump
• an insulin pen
• injections with a syringe
But insulin is just one part of the treatment picture. In addition, a person with type 1 diabetes must learn to manage a healthy meal plan and engage in regular physical activity, as well as test their blood sugar frequently. Why?
• Eating the right types and amounts of food provides fuel for everyday activities, without letting blood sugar rise outside the range recommended by your healthcare team.3
• Physical activity helps burn the extra sugar in your bloodstream, while reducing the risk of some long-term complications of diabetes.3
• Insulin unlocks the body’s cells, letting sugar in to provide energy.
• Testing blood sugar three or more times a day, depending upon your doctor’s recommendation, will help show how your efforts are paying off and help guide your doctor’s changes to your self-care plan.3
1 Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “National Diabetes Fact Sheet: General Information and National Estimates on Diabetes in the United States, 2005.
2 National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK). “Diabetes Overview.”
3 American Diabetes Association. “Standards of Medical Care in Diabetes—2006.” Diabetes Care 29 (2006): S4-S42.