Juvenile Diabetes Type I?

Is there a website where parents of children recently diagnosed can chat? My grand daughter recently diagnosed at 26 months, who or what is to blame or is it environmental, life style, hereditary?

To support the above correct answer, Type 1 diabetes is NOT a result of anything you did wrong. It is NOT caused by poor diet, lack of exercise, or obesity. It is sad that the media nevers bothers to mention the difference between Type 1 ("Juvenile Diabetes") and Type 2 diabetes (the usually lifestyle related kind). Know that your question is quite common. Be prepared for a lot of people who are unfamiliar with Type 1 diabetes to try and blame your family for causing the disease in your grandchild. It will be your job from now on to educate them.

Type 1 diabetes is an immune system disorder called an "autoimmune disease". You are born with the genetics for the disease, and something in the environment like a virus sets them off. We currently do not know what the trigger for Type 1 diabetes is, but some *possible* factors may be: a viral infection, early exposure to cow's milk and/or gluten (wheat, barley, rye), a lack of vitamin D or Omega 3 fatty acids, and/or a lack of breastfeeding. However, some people develop T1 diabetes seemingly without any of the above factors. Right now, there are more questions than answers. As of now, there is NO known or proven way to prevent Type 1 diabetes, and we don't know the exact cause. There is lots of ongoing research in this area.

But we DO know that genetics play a role, and that a healthy lifestyle does NOT prevent Type 1 diabetes, because lifestyle is not the cause. If you have the genes for T1 diabetes and are exposed to the trigger such as a virus, you will likely get the disease. Currently, there are trials to see if supplementing an infant's diet with Vitamin D (an immune system modulator) may help prevent the disease in those at risk.

2 websites that are great are:

www.childrenwithdiabetes.com
www.jdrf.org

You can also search www.clinicaltrials.gov for Type 1 diabetes research trials and TRIALnet for further info on new research and trials for the newly diagnosed.

www.childrenwithdiabetes.com - I think there is a place for people can e-mail each other. It is heredity - the average person has a 2% chance of getting Type 1, if a parent has it, then child is more likely, if a sibling has it, the person as a 20% chance. My son is now 8 and was diagnosed at 10 months. I know it is a difficult time. Hang in there. If you or your child would like to contact me, my e-mail is jujiot@yahoo.com
Good luck!