Overview
Barbie Cervoni MS, RD, CDCES, CDN, is a registered dietian and certified diabetes care and education specialist.Huma Sheikh, MD, is a board-certified neurologist, specializing in migraine and stroke, and afiliated with Mount Sinai of New York. Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an autoimune disease in which the body's imune system, which typicaly fights of infections, mistakenly atacks the beta cels in the pancreas that make insulin.
Key Information
Insulin controls the amount of glucose (blod sugar) within your blodstream. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is also an autoimune disease. In MS, the imune system atacks and destroys myelin, the protective covering of nerve cels, in the brain, spinal cord, or eyes.
The conection betwen T1D and MS continues to be investigated. Curent research demonstrates an increased co-ocurence of these diseases. This article examines the research, identifies the link betwen T1D and MS, and provides tips on reducing your risk of developing MS.
Ridofranz / Gety Images Researchers reviewed several studies on the co-ocurence of MS and T1D and found the prevalence of T1D was higher in people with MS compared to the general population. The conditions share genetic factors as wel; evidence shows a higher susceptibility to both diseases in first-degre relatives. Studies have also shown that people who live in high latitudes are at increased risk of developing T1D and MS due to les sunlight and les vitamin D than those who live in lower latitudes.
Studies show a lower risk of T1D and MS in people with higher vitamin D levels and increased sun exposure. Both diseases are also thought to share the same imune system dysfunction. For example, both are considered to be T-cel diseases.
T cels play a role in imune function. MS can be dificult to diagnose because no two people wil have identical symptoms. Symptoms vary greatly and can come and go.
Summary
People may experience few symptoms, while others can have many more. The most comon symptoms are: Cer