Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is a serious life-long health condition that causes high blood sugar.
If you or a loved one has T1D, you may know it requires ongoing care to prevent complications.
UPMC's team of diabetes experts can help. We will work with you to manage your blood sugar and monitor your health.
You can live a healthy and normal life with the right treatment and support.
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T1D causes high blood sugar because your pancreas stops making insulin.
Insulin is a hormone that regulates how much glucose (sugar) is in your blood. It moves glucose from your blood into your cells. Without it, sugar builds up in your bloodstream.
T1D is also known as insulin-dependent diabetes because you must have daily insulin shots to stay alive.
About 5% of people with diabetes have type 1 diabetes.
Anyone can get type 1 diabetes, but it's mostly diagnosed in children or young adults.
There are some differences with type 1 vs. type 2 diabetes:
Regular T1D starts suddenly and requires insulin right away.
Latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA) is a subtype of T1D. It starts in adults, but most people with it don't need insulin for at least six months.
LADA shares features of both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
T1D is an autoimmune disease, which means your immune system mistakenly attacks healthy cells. In this case, they attack insulin-producing cells in your pancreas.
Doctors aren't sure what triggers this or any autoimmune disease, but these things may play a role:
You might have a higher risk of getting T1D if you:
If left undiagnosed or untreated, T1D can lead to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a life-threatening condition.
DKA happens when you don't have enough insulin to get sugar into your cells for use as energy. Instead, your liver breaks down fat for fuel, producing acids called ketones.
With DKA, too many ketones cause dangerous and deadly acid levels in your blood.
Even without DKA, if you don't manage T1D well, you can also have these complications:
Currently, there's no way to prevent or reduce the risk of T1D.
Since type 1 diabetes is genetic in part, if you're at risk, your doctor can test for autoantibodies. Having diabetes autoantibodies makes you more likely to get it.
Back to topType 1 diabetes symptoms often occur suddenly, over a few days or weeks.
They can include:
Sometimes the first symptoms of type 1 diabetes are those of DKC.
DKC causes symptoms such as:
T1D requires fast medical care, especially if you or a child have symptoms of DKA. Contact your doctor or go to the nearest emergency department right away.
Doctors diagnose T1D with blood glucose and autoantibody tests.
Blood sugar levels will tell whether you have diabetes or not. The presence of autoantibodies will confirm if diabetes is type 1 or type 2.
If your doctor diagnoses you with T1D, they may run further tests to check for complications.
They will also suggest you regularly have:
T1D is a life-long disease. The best treatment and care come from a team approach.
UPMC's team of diabetes experts includes:
Our team provides tailored T1D care, education, support plans, and tools to help you stay healthy.
Type 1 diabetes treatments include medicine and lifestyle changes.
Insulin is vital for treating T1D.
Different types of insulin start to work at different speeds, and their effects last different lengths of time. You may need more than one type.
Options for taking insulin include:
A certified diabetes care and education specialist will teach you how to:
Your health care team will meet with you regularly to review your blood sugar readings and ensure you stay healthy.
A life-long healthy diet and lifestyle are vital for managing T1D.
UPMC's experts can work with you one-on-one and in our diabetes support groups to learn to:
