How serious is type 2 diabetes? Is it more serious than type 1 diabetes?
No, definitely not. In fact, in some ways type 2 diabetes is a more serious disorder because your mom may have had it for years before she was diagnosed. So she may well have developed some of the long-term, debilitating complications linked to the condition without knowing it.
In addition, since type 2 diabetes is a progressive disorder without a cure, over time her body may not be able to produce insulin or use it as well as it does now, and she may wind up needing insulin injections or pills.
A person with type1 diabetes ignores it for a day at his own peril. He'll likely end up in the emergency room because his body can't absorb glucose without a continuous supply of insulin via injection or an insulin pump. People with type 1 diabetes typically develop such severe symptoms over a short time in childhood or early adulthood that they're forced to deal with it.
Type 2 diabetes is a sneakier condition: Its harmful health effects can slowly build for years until full-blown complications, such as vision loss, heart disease, or foot problems, make it impossible to ignore. Plus it often comes with its own set of problems. For instance, people with type 2 diabetes are frequently diagnosed with high blood pressure and cholesterol along with high blood sugar. This damaging threesome can lead to progressive thickening of the arteries and reduced blood flow, putting your mom at greater risk for a slew of complications including heart disease, stroke, and nerve damage. If your mom is overweight as well, particularly if she's carrying excess pounds around her middle, she's at even greater risk of getting heart disease.
So while calibrating insulin dosages from an early age is no walk in the park for folks with type 1 diabetes, you can see that potential chronic complications and co-existing medical conditions make type 2 diabetes challenging to deal with as well. This doesn't mean your mother can't manage the condition; it just means she needs to do everything she can to safeguard her health.
This is a "stupid" response. No way is type 2 diabetes more serious that type 1. I have been a type 1 diabetic for 20 years now. I have had crazy reading even though I do my very best to control what I eat and exercise. I have diabetic nerve damage, and have signs of Chronic Kidney Disease. How can you say that Type 2 diabetes is more serious? Are you insane?
Tracy
Tracy31, the only reason she is saying it could be more serious is because it can go undiagnosed for much longer and people who have it don't take care of it because of the belief it isn't as serious and the lack of immediate consequences. (The NIH says a fourth of those with Type 2 don't even know it let alone treat it.) Since it goes untreated, those complications you describe happen without warning. Those who don't know can lose a food due to nerve damage before they are even diagnosed.
Your reinforcing this inaccuracy is only making it worse.
Both types are EXACTLY the same in seriousness as they result in the same effect on the body: blood glucose that is too high. (Type 1 folks don't have any insulin and Type 2 can't use the insulin that they have.) This results in the exact same complications including nerve damage which can lead to losing your feet, blindness, kidney disease, etc.
The reason most people thing Type 1 is more serious is because someone can die within a very short time from very low blood sugar. However, this is not caused by the diabetes but by the treatment: insulin. People with Type 2 diabetes who are on insulin or on any of the drugs that start with G have the same possibility of almost sudden drop in blood sugar and resulting death. It is exactly the same.
90-95% of American diabetics have Type 2. According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), 15 percent of diabetics will develop a foot ulcer (an open sore on the foot), and between 14 percent and 24 percent of that group will require some type of amputation. You do the math. ALL diabetics are at risk for nerve damage.
The myth that Type 1 is more serious or that Type 2 is solely caused by lifestyle issues is not only offensive but dangerous. According to the ADA, Type 2 diabetes is genetic as well. Lifestyle factors can affect whether someone develops diabetes sooner rather than later or at all, however most people who are overweight do not get the disease and lot of people who are thin develop diabetes.
In short: Type 1 and Type 2 have the same risk level for complications and therefore, in general, are equally serious.
Right, i am a type 1 diabetic and because i have type 1 diabetes i am not just saying that it is more dangerous, but the truth is that it is. Regarding Theresa Garnero's answer about the complications that type 2 diabetics can pick up, Type 1 diabetics can pick up these complications a whole lot easier if diabetes is not handled in the appropriate way. Type 2 diabetics can pick up these complications but not as quick as type 2 diabetes is a whole lot easier to control.
I do think that type 1 diabetes is a more severe case only because of the injections and the way that they are handled. If a type 1 diabetic does not do their injection then as soon as they go to sleep, about an hour later they will be in a coma and no one will know about it until the don't wake up. They will be taken to intensive care and be put on a drip. I know about this because this has happened to me.
So Melanie i do think that type 1 diabetes is more dangerous but to be honest they are both as bad as eachother if no handled in an appropriate way.
Alec
excuse me, but in truth, you are VERY wrong. its really annoying actually. Type 1 diabetes is so much more dangerous and deadly. Type 1 can go unnoticed for years, i wasnt diagnosed until i was 11 and ive had it all my life, it wasnt as serious before but the doctor said that if i went one more week without diagnosis i would have died. type 1 can have all of those complications and so much more. Type 2 doesnt have to take insulin injections 5 times a day. type 2 doesnt have to test as much. type 2 CAN BE CURED. so dont even try to act like it is more serious Teresa Garnero, and i dont mean to be rude or anything in any way, it just kind of ticks me off. sorry, but whoever told you type2 was more serious was DEAD WRONG. we can die with one day of carelessness.
I've been a type 1 diabetic since i was 16 and it is far more serious. Type 2 is caused most commonly by people who are overweight and who do not take care of themselves. The very thought that someone who takes a oral diabetic medication has it worse than someone who needs insulin to live is idiotic. I dare any type 2 to take a walk in my shoes or any other type 1 diabetics shoes. Type 1 diabetes is a disease where you're pancreas doesn't produce anymore insulin so you need insulin to live. Type 2 is when someone isn't producing enough insulin so they have to take a oral medication, and this is most commonly caused by someone who's overweight. Maybe if that person watched their weight and exercised they would'nt be in that situation.
Anonymous, while I don't agree that Type 2 is more serious you are VERY wrong and it's really annoying actually. I don't mean to be rude, either, but it kind of ticks me off, too. But I will address your specific concerns below. Type 2 can go unnoticed for years, too. Mhall, you're wrong about what Type 2 diabetes is (most Type 2 diabetics actually produce plenty of insulin but just can't use it) and it's cause (which I'll get to in a minute.) The reality is that both causes result in too much sugar in the blood. I do agree that insulin is very scary, but Type 2 diabetics often have to take it as well. Neither of you bothered to read my post about Type 2 and insulin.
Type1diabetic, your argument is the most persuasive. Type 2 diabetics can go into a diabetic coma as well (http://diabetes.webmd.com/hyperglycemic-hyperosmolar-nonketonic-syndrome) but it definitely isn't as common. The reality is that blood sugar that is too high can cause a coma. Most Type 2 diabetics are able to process some of the glucose but there are some who can't process hardly any which means they, too, need to take insulin and can go into a coma if they don't.
BOTTOM LINE: SERIOUSNESS OF THE DISEASE IS NOT THE SAME THING AS THE DANGER OF THE TREATMENT. It's like saying lung cancer isn't as serious as brain cancer because it can possibly be more successfully treated with less dangerous things than chemotherapy. Tell that to the people who die from lung cancer every year.
GET IT?
Many Type 2 diabetics don't discover they are diabetic until they end up in the hospital or die from diabetes complications, which I think is the author's point.
Here is just one story I found on the web: "I have witnessed [blood sugar too high] with my husband (luckily he pulled out of his coma) when he was diagnosed.....you must take your shots. Please take care of yourself.......my husband and I are vegetarian, regardless of the low amount of carbs, you can run into problems."
That was a type 2 diabetic who was diagnosed because he went into a coma. That's not serious?
Type 2 diabetes CANNOT BE CURED any more than Type 1 can. It doesn't even go into remission like cancer. The difference is that symptoms can go away IN SOME PEOPLE if they lose weight and eat healthy. If they stop eating healthy, even before they regain weight, they will begin to have symptoms again. Their bodies still do not process sugar as efficiently as a non-diabetic and they have to be careful. Many type 2 diabetics are lucky in that they can stave off diabetes symptoms until they are much older by taking care of themselves.
MANY TYPE 2 DIABETICS HAVE TO TAKE INSULIN shots several times a day, including one of my closest friends. So as I said before, THE ONLY TREATMENT for Type 1 diabetes is far more dangerous than the more common treatments for Type 1. Absolutely, and I would not want that burden. But to believe that only Type 1 diabetics have to take insulin is erroneous and ignorant. I also know a Type 1 diabetic who doesn't take his insulin shots as regularly as he should. I know Type 1 diabetics who eat like crap thinking (incorrectly) they can just take insulin to get their blood glucose levels on track and Type 2 diabetics who have to watch every single thing that goes in their mouths because Metformin will never cause low blood sugar so there is nothing to even out the highs. I know a type 2 diabetic who refuses to take insulin even though the doctor has prescribed it because she's terrified of dying suddenly. She refuses to acknowledge that she could die suddenly if she doesn't. Even if that doesn't happen, she will probably will be dead within a few years, dead of complications due to TYPE 2 diabetes.
The problem is that many Type 1 diabetics believe the media hype and don't bother to educate themselves about all forms of the disease. Diabetes is NOT caused by being overweight. Being overweight exacerbates the symptoms so that someone who might not develop symptoms until later will develop them earlier. That is why we are seeing people younger and younger getting it when it used to be called late-onset diabetes colloquially. The obesity "epidemic" is causing people who would show symptoms later in life to show symptoms now. The primary cause of diabetes is genetics and two genetic lines that have high rates of diabetes, Latinos and African Americans have increasing populations in North America. Hispanics are the fastest growing racial group in the US. The US has the highest incidence of diabetes in the world and Mexico has the second largest. If you go to Mexico, further south than the border, you won't see many obese Mexicans--they are far too poor.
I recently took a diabetes education class for Type 2 diabetics and of the 8 people in it, only one was overweight. ONE. That means almost 88% of the people in the class were of a normal body weight. Only two were elderly. That means that 5 or 62.5% of the class were young, thin people. But I asked anyway and the teachers said that the claim that it is a disease of obesity is ridiculous. Most obese people do not have Type 2 diabetes and plenty of thin people do.
My boyfriend has Type 1 diabetes and I was hoping to find out if there are better ways he can control his disease. I have been nagging him to eat better foods that will help to keep his blood sugar from spiking high and low. At least I have learned in here that it is his insulin shot at night that is causing his low blood sugar in the morning. But to see people arguing about which type is more dangerous was very disconcerting. Like I have told my boyfriend, shame on you if you are not taking special care to control your diabetes as much as possible. I have Multiple Sclerosis and I have a numb left foot and weak leg. I have lost most of my eyesight in one eye all from the MS. I was told this is what can happen to diabetics if they are not controlling their disease. I can't control the MS, I can't stop it from getting worse, and that is the only thing that is for sure with MS, it will get worse. Take control of your diabetes as best you can. Don't let the disease take away from you for shame on you if it does and you just let it happen.
I have Type I as well. I was diagnosed from a coma and nearly died. Type I can kill you not only from the treatment, but from the disease itself. If we do not inject ourselves with insulin every single day multiple times.... we will most certainly die. That is a fact... period! There is So much "hoopla" about type 2 out there right now and I'm sure that it is important to make people aware of the risks of Type 2 because it is becoming very prominant. But it should really in no way be compared to Type 1.
Type 1 is a daily death threat and there is nothing that can change that for us. Type 2 patients have a much larger range of choices for managing the disease and it isn't serious when controlled. Type 1 is always serious, even when controlled. It just isn't predictable no matter how much you try.
Saying that Type 2 is more serious is insulting. Just because a person does not know that they have a condition does not mean it is more serious in terms of a disease. Just because a person does not take care of themselves does not mean that the disease itself should be regarded as a more serious condition.
If a person with Type 1 and a person with Type 2 were sitting in the ER, there is no doubt that the Type 1 person should be dealt with first. Absolutely! Always! the Type 2's I know don't even both to check their blood every day. And then they cry about going blind. I check my blood at least 10 times a day and everything I do revolves around trying to keep it in control. For a person with Type 1, everything we do involves considering our blood sugar and insulin. I do not know one single Type 2 that puts that much time and thought into controlling their disease. Honestly, I would give almost anything if I could control my diabetes by getting a little exercise and losing a little weight and maybe popping a couple of pills.
Type 1 and Type 2 should really just never be compared to one another. They just are not even in the same realm. I seriously wish someone would have just given the two diseases different names because they really are not the same, no matter how hard the medical profession tries to make them the same. I don't know who the person is who wrote this article, but this mentality is the reason that Type 1's are getting so angry. Seriously, give us a break. We did not eat ourselves into this condition and we fight each and every day to live with it. Show us a little respect please!
Ps - maybedog... The "web article" that you referenced about the lady whose husband went into a coma from Type 2.. was probably Type 1.5 or possibly because he was a vegetarian. Do you know what causes DKA? It is extremely rare for a person with Type 2 to develop DKA.
There are a lot of conditions and diseases that develop from lifestyle choices and health habits. A lot of them are serious and I have empathy for persons with Type 2. But, I think the thing that makes a person like me with Type 1 so angry is that everyone is constantly comparing Type 1 and Type 2 because they share the same name "diabetes". But they are not the same disease. They are in fact two completely different diseases and people just need to stop comparing us. It just isn't a fair comparison. Its like comparing a deep cut that maybe needs a few stitches to a gunshot wound. They both need attention, but the cut is only going to kill you slowly and cause a messy infection and some pain, the gunshot wound will kill you for sure, very quickly. Please everyone just stop comparing us. Please... Please... it gives me high blood sugar!
