©2007 Publications International, Ltd. Although it can strike anyone at any age, many still refer to type 1 diabetes as juvenile-onset diabetes.

If you have type 1 diabetes, the chances are pretty good that you have known it for a long time: Half of all people diagnosed with type 1 diabetes are younger than 20 years old. In fact, type 1 diabetes used to be called juvenile-onset diabetes, though doctors eventually decided that name is inaccurate since it can strike anyone, at any age. Another alternative name is insulin-dependent diabetes, since virtually all folks with type 1 require injections of the crucial hormone. Only about 5 to 10 percent of all people with diabetes have type 1 diabetes, making it far less common than type 2 diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes begins with a glitch in the immune system, the body's defense against bacteria, viruses, and other microscopic nasties that roam around inside your body, trying to make you sick. The immune system is a complex network of vessels, fluids, white blood cells, and proteins called antibodies that patrol your innards, looking for things that don't belong. When your immune system detects a germ or anything else that is not recognized as part of the body, it fires off white blood cells and antibodies to engulf and destroy the intruder.

Unfortunately, in some people the immune system is guilty of friendly fire. It mistakes perfectly innocent and otherwise healthy body tissue for an enemy invader, attacking it with an onslaught of voracious immune cells. Depending on what part of the body your immune system attacks, the result can be one of many autoimmune diseases, which include rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, thyroiditis, and, yes, type 1 diabetes.

The next section will cover how your immune system can affect your body's insulin production.

For even more valuable information on Type 1 diabetes, try the following links:

• To learn more about diabetes in general, including diagnosis, causes, symptoms, and treatment, visit our main Diabetes page
• Our main Type 1 Diabetes page gives a thorough overview of this form of diabetes, commonly called "juvenile diabetes."
  
• Learn the diverse signs of type 1 diabetes, from increased thirst and hunger to sudden weight loss, in Symptoms of Type 1 Diabetes.
• For a variety of treatment options, read Treatment for Type 1 Diabetes.

This information is solely for informational purposes. IT IS NOT INTENDED TO PROVIDE MEDICAL ADVICE. Neither the Editors of Consumer Guide (R), Publications International, Ltd., the author nor publisher take responsibility for any possible consequences from any treatment, procedure, exercise, dietary modification, action or application of medication which results from reading or following the information contained in this information. The publication of this information does not constitute the practice of medicine, and this information does not replace the advice of your physician or other health care provider. Before undertaking any course of treatment, the reader must seek the advice of their physician or other health care provider.