Diabetes

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oth acidosis and hypoglycemia are likely to occur. This is sometimes called “brittle” diabetes. Insulin is required, but even with this, the disease may not be stable (Public Health Service Publication 1). Insulin-dependent diabetes (Type I), also called juvenile-onset diabetes, is the more serious form of the disease; about 10% of diabetics have this form. It is caused by destruction of pancreatic cells that make insulin and usually develops before age 30. Type I diabetics have a genetic predisposition to the disease. There is some evidence that it is triggered by a virus that changes the pancreatic cells in a way that prompts the immune system to attack them. The symptoms are the same as in the non-insulin-dependent variant, but they develop more rapidly and with more severity. Treatment includes a diet limited in carbohydrates and saturated fat, exercise to burn glucose, and regular insulin injections, sometimes administered via a portable insulin pump (Public Health Service Publication 2). SCOPE OF PROBLEM Diabetes is a worldwide disease and one of the most common endocrine disorders in the United States. Estimates vary, but there are more than 16 million diabetes in this country and nearly one million have type 1 diabetes (U.S. News and World Report 74). The number of diabetics seems to be increasing, and there are a number of reasons for this. First, people, in general, are living longer. Also, the life expectancy of diabetics is increasing; consequently, the total number of diabetics is on the increase. Young diabetics now remain alive and are able to bear children, thus increasing the number of people with inherited tendency toward the Type 1 diabetes. Type 1 Diabetes is most likely to be found among those who are: 1) at a young age, 2) obese, 3) blood relatives of diabetics, 4) mothers who have given birth to babies that weighed 9 pounds or more at birth, and 5) women who have shown carbohydrate intolerance during pregnancy...