Dear sugar friends, let’s talk today about how type 1 diabetes was formed. Understanding its causes helps us better prevent and understand the disease.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease. In short, we have a problem with our immune system, and we start attacking our own organization. In type 1 diabetes, the immune system wrongly treats insulin beta cells as enemies. Insulin, beta cells are very important, and they live in our pancreas, and the main job is to produce insulin. Insulin is like a key that helps the blood glucose enter the cell and gives it energy. When the immune system attacks the β-cells of insulin, the cells are damaged and the production of insulin is reduced.
Then why would the immune system attack itself? The exact reasons are not yet entirely clear, but research has found that relics play an important role. If there is type 1 diabetes in the family, the risk of type 1 diabetes in other family members increases. But genetics isn’t the only reason, because not everyone with a genetic tendency has a disease.
In addition to genetics, environmental factors can induce type 1 diabetes. For example, certain viruses are infected. Some studies have shown that following infections such as rubella virus, mumps virus, Kosage virus, etc., there may be an immune response to the body, which in some cases can wrongly spread to β cells in insulin, causing damage.
Other studies indicate that early infant exposure to milk proteins may also increase the risk of type 1 diabetes. This is because some protein components in milk are similar to some antigens in β cells in insulin, and the immune system may be confused during the identification process, leading to attacks on β cells in insulin.
In addition, our intestinal strain may be associated with the occurrence of type 1 diabetes. The intestinal strain is like a small society, and a balanced population contributes to the health of the body. When intestinal strains are imbalanced, they may affect the normal functioning of the immune system, thus increasing the likelihood of type 1 diabetes.
While we cannot fully control these factors, more attention can be paid to the details of life. For example, care to pre-empt viral infections; regular medical check-ups for families at genetic risk; attention to blood sugar changes, etc. And if we find out, we get to the doctor in time, so we can deal with this disease better. I hope everyone stays healthy, away from disease.
