What is a LADA diabetic? LADA stands for latent autoimmune diabetes in adults. It is sometimes referred to as Type 1.5 diabetes. This is a newly discovered form of diabetes, which seems to be a combination of type-1 and type-2, though many really consider it a form of type-1 diabetes which comes on at a slower onset.
The biggest difference between type-1 and type-2 diabetes is that type-1 is actually an autoimmune disease. This means the body’s immune system actually attacks its own cells. There are many types of autoimmune disorders, and in type-1 diabetes the system’s antibodies attack the beta cells of the pancreas. This renders the ability of the pancreas to create insulin, a hormone the body cannot sustain itself without. So, people with autoimmune diabetes must inject insulin in order to keep their body’s functioning properly.
LADA diabetic disease is commonly seen after the age of 30. Type-1 diabetes commonly sets in at childhood or young adulthood. If an LADA diabetic would visit the doctors, they would mistake her for a type-2 diabetic. They would put the diabetic on oral medications such as metformin, but it never seemed to have much effect, and overtime her blood sugars would continue to rise. Overtime, it is recognized that she is not making enough insulin and it must be administered to her. For years, this was a typical case for a diabetic. Some feel that misdiagnosis of these patients caused them to be medicated incorrectly. In fact, how to go about treating an LADA diabetic is still a controversial subject.
The LADA Diabetic and Insulin
In people with type-1 diabetes, the autoimmunity sets in very quickly and symptoms may come on in as little amount of time as a week. For the LADA diabetic, the onset is much slower and it may take up to a decade for them to lose the capacity to secrete insulin. The LADA diabetic benefits from being put onto an insulin regiment as soon as possible. Studies have shown that injecting the insulin may actually turn off the autoimmune attack and preserve beta cell function.
It has been suggested that because people which are overweight generally get diagnosed with type-2, they are denied insulin treatment since doctors believe that it will make their problems worse. However, this causes the misdiagnosed to spend years with high blood sugar levels. If you wonder if you have been or are being misdiagnosed, an antibody test can usually solve this issue. It is advisable to request an antibody test to ensure that you are not misdiagnosed (DiabetesUpdate.BlogSpot.com, 2009).
