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Prevention of Type 1 Diabetes in Children

Diabetes is a disease in which insulin production is disrupted so that the body cannot produce enough of it to properly use glucose. The disease is often related to hereditary factors, so prevention depends on how well the individual can manage such factors to either prevent the disease or delay its onset.

  1. Types of Diabetes

    • Diabetes is categorized as Type 1 or Type 2. In Type 1 (formerly called juvenile diabetes), the body cannot create insulin; the condition often occurs early in life. In the more common Type 2 diabetes, the body can produce some insulin but is unable to use it well enough to control the blood sugar levels.

    Prevention Based on Type

    • Type 2 diabetes can often be controlled, and even prevented, via measures such as following a healthy diet, managing weight and exercising regularly. Type 1 diabetes is essentially an auto-immune problem within the body and cannot be strictly prevented. Research, however, is underway to establish new means of avoiding Type 1 diabetes.

    Genetic Factors

    • Both forms of diabetes have genetic components. Researchers are working to establish guidelines that will help identify children most likely to get Type 1 diabetes. In most cases, these children inherit the diabetes risk from both parents. In determining who is likely to have the disease, researchers hope to establish ways to determine preventative measures that can begin perhaps even before birth.

    Triggers

    • Some individuals with risk factors do not get Type 1 diabetes; others do. It's not known definitively what triggers the disease. One suspect is a virus that may trigger diabetes in those who are susceptible. Type 1 diabetes is more common in babies who were not breastfed, perhaps due to the natural immunity breastfeeding confers. Autoantibodies are part of an autoimmune response that fight the individual's own body. Research has shown that autoantibodies have appeared in some people well before they developed Type 1 diabetes, leading scientists to believe that these autoantibodies have damaged organs for many years before diabetes develops.

    Estradiol Protection

    • In studies on mice performed by the Baylor College of Medicine, estradiol, an estrogen hormone, helped to protect the ability of the pancreas to create insulin. There is hope that the study may have implications for humans; however, the scope of those studies has not yet been extended.

    Parental Intervention

    • A study reported by the American Diabetes Association noted that mothers of children who were genetically inclined to develop Type 1 diabetes were more likely to take special interest in trying to prevent the disease, as by managing the child's diet more closely, ensuring she received exercise and having her tested regularly for diabetes.

    Prevention Alternatives

    • Although it has not been proven, some researchers suggest various alternative measures that they think will prevent or delay the onset of Type 1 diabetes. Among these is the use of Vitamin D and Omega-3, which have appeared to cut the development of the disease among those with risk factors. Since diabetes is an autoimmune disease, some also believe that antioxidants, such as those found in green tea, can help regulate the body's own natural immune system.

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