Nutrition Science and Everyday Application - beta v 0.1

204 ALICE CALLAHAN, PHD, HEATHER LEONARD, MED, RDN, AND TAMBERLY POWELL, MS, RDN
Type 1 Diabetes:
This is an autoimmune disease in which the beta-cells of the pancreas are destroyed by
your own immune system. Without the beta-cells, you can’t make enough insulin, so in
type 1 diabetes, you simply don’t have enough insulin to regulate your blood glucose levels.
Remember how we said insulin is like the key that lets glucose into the body’s cells? In type 1
diabetes, you’re missing the key, so glucose stays in the blood and can’t get into cells.
Figure 4.19. In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas does not make enough insulin, so glucose
transporters (GLUT-4) do not open on the cell membrane, and glucose is stuck outside the cell.
Common symptoms include weight loss and fatigue, because the body’s cells are starved
of glucose. Excess glucose from the blood is also excreted in the urine, increasing urination
and thirst.
Once diagnosed, type 1 diabetics have to take insulin in order to regulate their blood
glucose. Traditionally, this has required insulin injections timed with meals. New devices
like continuous glucose monitors and automatic insulin pumps can track glucose levels and
provide the right amount of insulin, making managing type 1 diabetes a little easier. Figuring
out the right amount of insulin is important, because chronically elevated blood glucose
levels can cause damage to tissues around the body. However, too much insulin will cause
hypoglycemia, which can be very dangerous.
Type 1 diabetes is most commonly diagnosed in childhood, but it has been known to
develop at any age. It’s much less common than type 2 diabetes, accounting for 5-10% of
cases of diabetes.