Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes may share a name, but they are fundamentally different conditions. Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. It affects an estimated 9.5 million people worldwide, including up to 2 million children and adolescents. In this condition, the immune system mistakenly attacks the pancreas’s insulin-producing cells, leaving the body unable to move sugar out of the bloodstream and into cells for energy.
Without insulin therapy, Type 1 diabetes is fatal. However, insulin has risks. Even with proper insulin management, elevated blood sugar can damage the heart, eyes, kidneys, nerves, and other organs, leading to serious life-threatening complications.
