Type 1 Diabetes Shortens Life by More than a Decade: Study

Type 1 diabetes substantially reduces life expectancy when compared to general population, a new study shows.

The study from University of Dundee in Scotland shows that men with type 1 diabetes live 11 years less while life expectancy is reduced by 13 years for women compared to general Scottish population. While the gap is large, researchers said their study shows a historic improvement and points to improvement in diabetic care, BBC reported. The immune system in people with type 1 diabetes, also known as juvenile diabetes, attacks pancreas and prevents insulin production. Patients have to inject insulin for sugar metabolism.

"Past studies cite loss of life expectancy of between 15 and 20 years. Estimates from the United States in the 1970s reported a loss of 27 years, while a New Zealand study in the 1980s found a loss of 16.5 years," a news release said about historic data, indicating the improvement the present study has shown.

According to Reuters, heart disease causes the biggest reduction in life expectancy. Control of sugar metabolism is crucial to ensure that ensure kidney function, which in turn affects heart function, is not affected. Maintaining kidney function however did not eliminate loss to life expectancy, indicating that research was need to find better treatment options for type 1 diabetes.

"Kidney disease in diabetes was shown to be an important contributor to the reduced life span. However it is not the only cause - even among patients with type 1 diabetes and preserved kidney function, life expectancy was reduced, with an estimated loss from age 20 years of 8.3 years for men and 7.9 years for women," researchers said.