Diabetes type 1 and glucagon
Common Questions and Answers about Diabetes type 1 and glucagon
diabetes
I am a long distancer runner training for a marathon. I have lived with type 1 diabetes for thirteen years. I use the Bernstein dietary regimen and "exercise technique", which consists of eating small amounts of dextrose while running to compensate for the hypoglycemic effect of exercise. The aim is to keep blood sugar normal at all times. It works. Google "Bernstein diabetes" for the book.
Most have absolutely no idea what type 1 diabetes is, for all of the media publicity is about type 2 diabetes, which has different causes and treatments. I find that most people are fascinated to learn that type 1 is an autoimmune disease, and that it is related to other autoimmune diseases like thyroid disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and Lupus.
I am a high school student who has a brother with juvenile diabetes, diagnosed at the age of 6. I often do oral reports on the educating the public of Type 1 diabetes and I am to do my next oral report on the use of the glucagon emergency kit. My brother has had to use it a few times but we don't have any written material on it and I was hoping someone can direct me to the right place to get this information for my report.
My 19 year old son was diagnosed at age 13 with type 1 diabetes. He has overall good blood sugar control. He's an athlete -- trains for marathons and bikes at least 30 miles a day and has for the past couple of years. The problem is, (when you least expect it), we can't wake him up in the morning because of extemely low blood sugar.
Now please don't tell me the reasons this may happen -- we know them all.
I live alone and have type 1 diabetes. Here are a few steps to take in order to prevent trouble with lows while no one is around that seem to work well for me. First of all I keep orange juice and milk in the fridge at all times. When I am alone I check my blood sugar ever hour and more often if I feel strange. I also always have glucose tablets in each room of my house. My neighbors also know that I am type 1 and my parents call my house each night to make sure Im okay.
s blood sugar level had dropped severely and he was in diabetic shock and apparently had a seizure (he bit his tongue and is now complaining of severe pain in his shoulders which the drs have attributed to muscle contractions that took place during the seizure). No adjustments to his insulin has been made at this point (he takes Lantus at night). My concern this evening is that his sugar level before going to bed tonight was 526.
The pancreas produces insulin and glucagon. Insulin lowers blood sugar, glucagon raises blood sugar. An enzyme (HMGCoA) controls the production of cholesterol in your liver. The hormones glucagon and insulin control the release of this enzyme. To control cholesterol production, you want to increase glucagon and decrease insulin. This is what statin drugs do.
I am not a physician, but a volunteer and mom of a type 1 diabetic.
I would suggest that your son tells his roommate and the resident assistant that lives on his floor, that he is a diabetic and what to do in an emergency. This way there are at least 2 people that can help if god forbid your son has a problem. The resident assistant will also be able to advise you as to who else should be notified on campus, besides the campus health office.
There was just a report on the news last week that statins have been linked top type II diabetes. My wife is on 80mg of Simvastatin while I'm on 20mg. Coincidence or not, we both contracted type II in recent years. I believe that the benefits pf statins outweigh the risks and have altered my eating lifestyle so to nearly exclude carbohydrates. This has enabled me to continue statin regime while keeping my fasting blood glucose levels at acceptaptable unmedicated levels.
I have had type 1 diabetes for 28 years. I have seen many low blood sugars, as the "night nurse" at a diabetic camp...i am not a medical person, it was simply my job to check people for low blood sugars. I saw everything, including some really weird behavior. One tip I learned for checking for low blood sugars, was to shine a flashlight in the eyes of the camper - if they reacted, I left them alone. If not, I woke them up, and checked their blood sugar level.
It is important that a person with diabetes (I assume your hubby is Type 1, given how low he got) learn about Glucagon and always have a Glucagon kit available bedside. You might ask the endo for an extra kit so that you can practice with one (into an orange) do you'll know the technique when you need it. My hubby was taught to call 911 and then give me a shot of Glucagon while he awaits their arrival.
It *is* terrifying to witness a seizure.
I do know that some type 1 diabetics do have limited response from the liver when they have lows, and there doesn't seem to be much in the way of help for those people other than keeping food and drink close by at all times, for they will not rise to the challenge of a low by producing much in the way of emergency sugars. I seem to be one of those people, and so lows are a threat I take very seriously.
Hi, my 5 yr old son was diagnosed with type 1 Diabetes approximately two and a half years ago. He has, over the past 2-3 months become incredibly unstable with frequent hypoglycaemic episodes, resulting in loss of consciousness. There are a number of factors which may be influencing this,(?sickness, exercise,rapid metabolism of NPH, glycogen depletion?).
My son is 12 yrs.old Type 1 for 1 1/2 yrs. We are having problems with seizures. He has never had a seizure until diagnoised with diabetes. He has only had seizures while while he had been asleep. Does excitement work on the blood sugars to drop them enough for a seizure? I have been reading some of the comments about everyone is different as to "what is low" in regards to low b/s seizure. My son had a seizure Christmas morning.
My boyfriend (has type 1) almost every night gets incoherent and starts twitching and gets to the point where he cant control anything he does. it gets soo bad with the shaking and twitching sometimes that he will try and stand up and fall down over and over, he ends up completely covered in sweat even before. he also will making gargling noises or fake chew, smacking his lips. he told me to give him like chocolate milk or gatorade to bring his sugar up till he comes to it.
Help! My newly diagnosed roommate isn't eating to lose weight. She was diagosed in 11/07 and was told eating right would be very important in helping to regulate her insulin intake. Her blood sugar is still all over the place; too low, & way too high. She gained about 20 lbs the last few months and is now only drinking these advantage no sugar 2 carb protein drinks with very little to no food everyday. I don't know enough about diabetes and need some help.
Furthermore, I firmly believe that all type 1 diabetics should keep one glucagon kit handy just in case a night low happens and you cannot be easily roused to drink juice. This can change a night low from being terrifying to a not very big deal. I have been roused a few times by my husband having to give glucagon back in the days when I used older insulins that were harder to calculate, and the glucagon works beautifully.
Hi Dalki,
Yes, in time your doctor will likely know for sure which type of diabetes you have. In addition to Type 1 and Type 2, there seems to be a type 1.5 ... tho' there's some thought that 1.5s are just in the early stages of Type 1. We DMers (folks with diabetes mellitis) and our docs often call that a honeymoon phase.
I hope you're feeling better now that your bloodsugar has begun to come down. Things may remain volatile for a while, so try to be patient with yourself.
herringv,
I need to do some research to answer your question, so pls check back, too. Some medications seem to make us more (or less) sensitive to insulin; other meds can affect our appetites and interest in food at all.
While I'm not a physician, what I know of most folks with Type 1 diabetes, it is not a disease that can go away without a transplant - and that's not an option for most (research will hopefully change that reality for us).
Between December 2002 and October 2005, 189 non-diabetic patients were treated with Peg-IFN-alpha/Riba, of whom five developed type 1 DM (2.6%), three type 2 DM (1.6%) and one an indeterminate type of DM. Classical symptoms of DM were present in three patients who developed DM shortly after cessation of Peg-IFN-alpha/Riba. In the other patients, symptoms of DM were either indistinguishable from side effects caused by Peg-IFN-alpha/Riba or absent.
Hi all, I'm a type 1 diabetic and I had a severe hypoglycemic episode 2 days ago while I was sleeping, requiring my wife to give me glucagon. It was three days after a previous episode (also sleeping), and I am still feeling a bit "foggy." I feel woozy and vaguely off-balance, and the closest analogy I can give to the feeling is that of a vicious, vicious hangover.
Hello again, Wendy -
Your fear is shared by every parent of a diabetic child. Truth is, normally when our blood sugars drop too low, our liver will dump glucose into our blood stream to raise it. So, all diabetics have a built-in safety valve that protects us from all but the most rare of situations. Each time our liver 'dumps' glucose, it takes a few good meals and some time for our livers to rebuild the storehouse for the next time.
I also noted the JAMA reminder/caution that food does not cause Type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. This study and others looked at the impact of specific foods/timing of introduction in at-risk children.
Please know that Type 2 is a completely different disease than Type 1. Type 1 is autoimmune, and researchers are striving to find out what triggers (or doesn't) trigger the disease. Type 2 has completely different origins.
I have type 1 diabetes, and have had this challenging disease for 30 years. I am believing that I may be having the first signs of some nerve damage and am wondering what doctors/specialists I sure see. Right now I have a family practioner, and have had this same doctor for years....any suggestions on where to go next? I have excellent insurance (not always the case) and want to take care of this before the situation gets worse? Help.
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