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Diabetes Type 1
Reviewed by Medicinsk Expert•Last updated: 2026-10-22•Immune System

Diabetes Type 1

Type 1 diabetes occurs when the pancreas fails to produce insulin, requiring lifelong management to maintain healthy blood glucose levels.

Overview

Diabetes means your blood glucose, or blood sugar, levels are too high. With type 1 diabetes, your pancreas does not make insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps glucose get into your cells to give them energy. Without insulin, too much glucose stays in your blood. Over time, high blood glucose can lead to serious problems with your heart, eyes, kidneys, nerves, and gums and teeth.

Symptoms

Type 1 diabetes happens most often in children and young adults but can appear at any age. Symptoms may include:

  • Being very thirsty
  • Urinating often
  • Feeling very hungry or tired
  • Losing weight without trying
  • Having sores that heal slowly
  • Having dry, itchy skin
  • Losing the feeling in your feet or having tingling in your feet
  • Having blurry eyesight

Diagnosis & Management

A blood test can show if you have diabetes. If you do, you will need to take insulin for the rest of your life. A blood test called the A1C can check to see how well you are managing your diabetes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Maintain tight glucose control (A1C <7% if safe), keep blood pressure and lipids within target ranges, avoid smoking, and schedule regular eye exams, foot exams, and dental check‑ups to catch early signs of complications.
Most people with type 1 diabetes test 4–6 times daily—fasting, before meals, and 2 hours after meals. Look for consistently high readings (>180 mg/dL) after meals or low readings (250 mg/dL, call emergency services immediately, as DKA is a medical emergency.
During fever, insulin sensitivity often decreases, so you may need a higher basal dose or more frequent monitoring. During exercise, insulin sensitivity increases; you may reduce rapid‑acting insulin by 10–20% for meals around the activity and monitor glucose closely to avoid hypoglycemia.
Source: MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine

MedlinePlus brings together authoritative health information from the National Library of Medicine (NLM), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other government agencies and health-related organizations.

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