Type 1 Diabetes is NOT the same of Type 2!! It is a SERIOUS medical condition and is NOT caused by lifestyle!

[TIDMum]

Just had the Sky guy here to upgrade internet speed and he asked about DS's glucose monitor alarm going off so I said he's a Type 1 diabetic. He was asking if it was a care alarm then said 'oh so not that serious, just for the blood sugar reading'.

He then said that his wife was Type 1 and we had a little discussion about her GM and what type of insulin pump she's on (which she doesn't actually have!) and he then said 'I blame diet and alcopops really'.

It then became clear his wife was Type 2.

I said 'oh right, I blame COVID actually because you know it's an autoimmune disorder?' He said 'oh right' then was quiet while he finished his work.

DS (age 16) heard this as he was walking past.

DS said he's an idiot but this really annoys me.

I can't count how many times over the last 4 years since his diagnosis, people have started talking to me about their sister, aunt or neighbour having 'Type 1' when it's actually Type 2 they're talking about. He had the teasing at school about too much sugar as well.

I really think if you don't know what Type 1 diabetes, shut up and don't talk about it tbh.

AIBU to get pissed off about this? I can't think of any other serious medical conditions that are mistaken like this.

I'm with you on this one, OP. Type 1 Diabetes is vastly different to so-called Type 2 ... Type 1 is genetic and forever. They should have called Type 2 something else frankly to stop the kind of constant nonsense people spout about it being the same thing.

Agree. My DH has type 2 and get the Diabetes UK newsletter/use the website. I do think T1 is under represented and if that translates into general society then it’s no wonder there are attitudes like that of Sky Guy. I remember watching a US comedy programme a little while back - can’t remember what it was, but a kid was sitting down to a bowl of ice cream and the comedy line was ‘oh look a big bowl of diabetes’. Not helpful.

I don’t think you are very well informed about type 2! My husband’s parents both had type two, and a few of his siblings too, so hardly surprising he was found to have it. . Both conditions are potentially dangerous. Type 1 is not superior!

Agreed - a bit like IBD (Crohns and Ulcerative Colitis) and people saying 'Oh yes I sometimes get IBS' (which is absolutely not the same thing) or suggesting that it can be cured/controlled by taking up yoga. Soooo infuriating and hugely hurtful to those whose lives are absolutely blighted by IBD.

YANBU to find it annoying but you may as well work on not letting it wind you up because it's a very common misunderstanding and you're gonna hear it a lot, surely.

In my experience, pretty much all diseases are worse than you thought, before you or a family menber developed it.

There's such cluelessness out there, try not to let it get to you.

Type 2 diabetes isn't caused by 'lifestyle'. It's caused by insulin resistance, which can result from various factors including age, ethnicity and family history, among others.

Yes, diabetes is a very serious disease, needs to be carefully monitored, managed and treated.

Type 2 diabetes can be serious if not kept under control but it is possible to control or even reverse it with care and strong will.

“Type 2 is on the rise, sometimes due to life style, sometimes other factors,”

I posted this earlier.

Type 1 diabetes rates are rising worldwide due to environmental and lifestyle changes that trigger autoimmune responses in people with a genetic risk.

My husband, a type two diabetic on insulin, was pricking his fingers four times a day over many years, and he was losing sensation in his fingertips. He asked to go on the libre system, and has been on it for over a year now. To those who think they won’t get this on the NHS because they have type 2- ask

As someone who has had type 1 diabetes for around 30 years, I can’t really get too activated about this. He didn’t understand and said something incorrect. Type 2 diabetes is horrible as well and is not a always the result of bad habits.

The people I most feel sorry for are the poor women to develop gestational diabetes in pregnancy. It must be horrible to get this and not even have the knowledge to manage it and be able to eat a load of carbs in pregnancy.

People saying who cares and who would know the difference are blowing my mind (no diabetes of either type in family). Basic education what.

I have IBD (ulcerative colitis), it often gets mixed up with IBS but I certainly wouldn't complain about someone non-medical who assumed they were a similar thing.

I mean, you've gotta be pretty uptight to get so wound up about it.

My father has had type 1 since he was a child - he's now in his late 70's. Its impacted his whole life - his diet and the way he behaves. I remember the hypos when I was a child and having to help my mum feed him sugar water. I remember the glass syringes he used daily. He injects 3 times a day even now and has had numerous pumps and monitors. Its totally different and something that children have to put up with their whole life. Type 2 is usually later onset and can be solved with a change of diet and lifestyle plus medication. Its totally different and life changing.

I can relate to this. My SiL has always been slim, active (regular fell walking hobby) and watched her diet. She was diagnosed as just over the pre-diabetic mark some time ago and did exactly the same thing. She cut out bread, sugar and watched carbs like a hawk. Absolutely no difference except that now she’s lost weight she couldn’t afford to lose and is at risk of osteoporosis. She’s in her late seventies and it was only after she had taken all these measures that she was told age is the biggest factor and she can’t do anything about that !! Sometimes I think we know too much for our own good.

Why do you care what other people think, though? Why not let him be content in his ignorance and get on with your day? There's nothing he could have done to your DS to improve or worsen his T1 diabetes, so why the upset?

They have different causes but both are serious. Obesity obviously massively increases the risk of type 2 but that doesn't mean everyone is obese.

Type 2 isnt just caused by lifestyle though. My neighbour has it due to cancer treatment and my friend has it due to a transplant.

People aren't thick; they just don't know about things that don't concern them. If you don't have diabetes (in any of its forms) and none of your loved ones do either, then there is no real need for you to understand the difference.

I don't know about oesophagal cancer because it's irrelevant to me. Same with rocket science. It doesn't make me thick, it makes me uneducated about those topics. It's ridiculous to contemptuous about people that don't know stuff in which you have knowledge because you have a direct interest.

As for OP wanting to complain to the gas board because the gas man doesn't know the difference between T1 and T2...I hope he knows the difference between Butane and Natural Gas; T1 and T2 diabetes? I don't give a fig. He was trying to be friendly and she wants him to lose his job!

It's clear that the OP is fizzing with rage and bitterness and has lost all sense of proportion

I disagree you'd have to be uptight to care about it, IF the result of the person's ignorance is they dismiss you and think judgemental nonsense like your disease is caused by simply being too anxious not managing stress properly.

Or if it's a family member who's never cared enough to learn the difference despite you suffering from it for decades.

Evern worse when it's a medical professional who knows it's IBD not IBS, and they still treat you like it's a psychological problem.

Yes, i would take medication rather than loose weight if her bmi is already low.

Some assumptions here. T2 isn’t later onset - it’s often diagnosed later when symptoms begin to show or as a result of other testing. By that time severe damage can be done to the heart, vascular system and kidneys. And it’s often caused by factors other than lifestyle - autoimmune conditions like rheumatoid arthritis can trigger T2 because the meds used, genetics play a part, as does age and ethnicity. Changing diet has zero effect on those factors as they’re outside the control of the person and finding effective meds can be tricky.

Try having type 3c and the ignorance and lack of knowledge about that even among medical staff!

I can fully understand why you are irritated by this OP, I would be too.
But there is such a variable level of understanding into health conditions, fuelled by a number of factors that I think you need to let it go.

I only learned about type 1.5 diabetes a few years ago and I've been a medical journalist for a long time. I was suitably embarrassed.