Type 2 to Type 1???? How??

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-25-2008
Type 2 to Type 1???? How??
5
Tue, 11-25-2008 - 12:40pm

Hello all:


I am new to the board but not new to Diabetes, which runs in my family and claimed the life of both my grandmother at 54 and recently my mother, at age 53. I'm looking to live a bit longer than that, so I'm hoping maybe someone will have some ideas on the following. These were useless, senseless deaths.


My question is this... my mother had gestational diabetes both with me and my younger brother. After I was born it went away, after my brother, it stayed and she was diagnosed as a Type 2 Diabetic. First it was controllable by oral medication and eventually she had to take insulin shots. She did not manage her diabetes too well, and loved chocolate. Enough said.


Her death certificate lists her cause of death as diabetic ketoacidosis (diabetic coma) which she had had a few times and was hospitalized for it a few years prior to her death. After that, I bought ketone strips, did everything possible that I knew to. I understand fully what it is and what causes it, but I did not know until more recently that ketoacidosis ONLY occurs in Type 1 Diabetics.


Can anyone tell me if this has happened to them (not necessarily death, I hope) or anyone you know? Was she misdiagnosed, or did Type 2 turn into Type 1? I've heard about LADA (Type 1.5) and while it's possible, I don't think my mother had it. If she did and this is the only way that that can happen (Type 2 turning into 1), I would like to find out and work on promoting awareness - the numbers of diabetics are increasing rapidly, and the fact that the Type can change is not getting any press and it should be if it can in fact happen. 


Thank you for reading and please let me know if you have any ideas on how this might have happened. It would mean alot to me personally as my odds of getting this myself are pretty high.

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-03-2003
Tue, 11-25-2008 - 2:36pm

If the cells that produce insulin totally shut down, that's Type 1. Type 2 diabetics are still producing insulin but not enough and/or not used efficiently. Poorly managed Type 2 puts a major strain on said insulin producing cells and can, in some cases, cause them to "wear out" and stop producing insulin in any kind of usable amount. So, yes, it's possible to go from Type 2 to Type 1.

For yourself, the best thing is to do all the "right stuff" - exercise, keep your weight at a healthy level, watch the amount of carbs you consume (not just sugar, ALL carbs are in the picture - whether it's a candy bar or a baked potato or a bowl of spaghetti). You probably also want to work with your physician and make sure you get at least annual serum glucose testing, possibly A1C testing as well, to check on where you're at. And, if you're over 45 you'd definitely want to do it. I was diagnosed early with no symptoms or complications simply because my endocrinologist (who I was seeing for hypothyroid) did a "routine" fasting serum glucose (blood test) and discovered that I was just over the threshold for diagnosis (the line is 126 and I was in the low 130s).

I can't say whether ketoacidosis is always and only a result of Type 1 - I'm not a medical person.

--Deb

Avatar for cl_maryfrances40
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Tue, 11-25-2008 - 10:43pm

Hi,


First let me offer my condolences for your mother and grandmother. Both certainly died too young and I am really sorry.


What happens to some type 2 diabetics is that they wear our their beta cells in their pancreas and

Avatar for cl_maryfrances40
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Tue, 11-25-2008 - 10:52pm

Deb,


You can not go from type

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-03-2003
Mon, 12-01-2008 - 10:23am

After my DH had a TIA back in October, I was sitting and discussing it with our 10 yr old DS (we give him full information, in 10 yr old sized bites, regarding pretty much everything that might affect him). He said "Gee, between your diabetes and Daddy's cholesterol and stuff, I'm really going to have to watch it when I turn 40" (DH turned 40 this year, and 45 is the age where routine testing for diabetes usually begins). I replied that he needs to start watching himself now and eating healthy and exercising, which he already knows and is doing. He's taken to grabbing his current reading material and reading a chapter or two while on the exercise bike (20 minutes or so at a time) in addition to his usual 10 yr old boy activity level. He reads and understands package labels and has developed a taste for 'real food' like whole grain products and minimally/non-processed foods (we all prefer homemade whole wheat pizza with fresh mozzarella and low sodium sauce to anything you can buy, one typical slice of 1/8 the pie is enough to be satisfying because of the fiber and is still low enough not to throw my glucose out of whack, as always YMMV). All in all, he's got a good chance of skipping the weight issues on both sides of the family that contribute to the problems DH and I have developed. Honestly, we've learned a lot more about healthy eating from him than anything - he's never been limited or regulated or required to eat a certain way from the time he was born. As a result, he eats when he's hungry, stops when he's not, enjoys food without the baggage most people carry around about good/bad/"forbidden" etc. He can actually eat just one potato chip LOL (I had some relatives asking how we did it when he was 3 and was chowing down on fresh broccoli whent heir kids would never touch a vegetable. We just said that we never made him dislike it)

--Deb

Avatar for cl_maryfrances40
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-25-2003
Tue, 12-02-2008 - 1:54am

"We just said that we never made him dislike it)"! Deb, that is so true and also he saw you eating them and he didn't think anything was strange. My SIL won't eat any veggies except iceberg lettuce but his son eats all kinds of veggies because his mother serves them to him. Infact he would rather eat his fruits and veggies than eat any meat.


When my husband's daughters would come to visit us on the weekends I would serve all kinds of different fruits and veggies and the rule was that they needed to taste it. If they didn't like it and didn't want to eat it that was okay. Consequently they were introduced to many new foods that they liked. Then their mother would get angry with me because she had no idea what they were or how to prepare them! But the result is that they eat a lot more veggies than their mother does to this day.


It is so wonderful that you have taught him about his health issues early and I certainly hope that he never walks down the street that you and your husband have been walking on.


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