- Messages
- 4,239
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
-
Diet drinks - the artificial sweeteners taste vile.
Having to forswear foods I have loved all my life.
Trying to find low carb meals when eating out.
I've been trying to look up a precise definition of LADA.
The overall view seems to be that if you are of normal weight but still need medication, and your historical control is slowly worsening, then you are probably/possibly LADA.
However when you look more detail there are lots of "usually" and "probably" get out clauses.
The most confusing thing is that the honeymoon period can allegedly last for up to 15 years, which is a stark contrast to most diagnoses of T1 for young people where it can present almost overnight.
Then again, unless you are tested for T1 on first diagnosis and then regularly for that 15 years how do they know that you had a 15 year honeymoon period?
How do they know that you didn't have an autoimmune response at year 14?
The tests look for low/no insulin production combined with antibodies which suggest an autoimmune response (but which are not always present).
There is much speculation, including that up to 20% of people initially diagnosed as T2 are in fact T1/LADA.
This does sound suspiciously close to the "Not all T2s are overweight or obese. 20% are normal weight on diagnosis."
My personal situation is, as usual, confusing.
I was diagnosed when I had a rapid weight loss from 14 and a half stone to 14 stone.
Quick calculator says BMI of 27.5 pre diagnosis (14 stone 7 lbs) so overweight but nowhere near obese.
BMI of 26.5 immediately on diagnosis at 14 stone.
Fairly quickly down to 13 stone 7 lbs which is "mildly" overweight.
Target 13 stone 3 lbs on the BMI calculator.
It took me a good while to get an understanding of the diet part of diet and exercise (but remember this was over 11 years ago and understanding of LCHF has moved on a long way since then).
It took me a good long while to get my weight down in the 12 stone 7 lbs region and it is only recently that I have managed to really break through into 11 stone territory (been there before, but not consistently).
I had an IR test a couple of years back, and at that point I had "mild" IR. My insulin production was in the low part of normal and my BG was elevated. Thus IR. However not massive IR coupled with over production of insulin. Then again LCHF which suppresses insulin production.
However "honeymoon period" means that your pancreas is still producing insulin, n'est-ce pas?
So I seem to have low insulin production (which is presumably also slowly declining as I am having to increase my Metformin to the maximum dose) and mild Insulin Resistance but no absolute explanation of why my insulin production is declining.
Is it natural ageing?
Is it long term abnormal BG levels?
Is it an autoimmune response?
Does $DEITY hate me?
I assume a test for antibodies might confirm an autoimmune response of some kind, however also allegedly the lack of antibodies is not conclusive.
So I realise that I could possibly be LADA but does it make much difference?
Apart from adding to some statistics which point to T2 being long term degenerative when instead it could be T1 with a long honeymoon?
Whatever, I assume that the treatment pathway is the same.
So is there any practical benefit to being tested?
Most importantly, do I get to wear the cool T shirt?????
Edit: forgot to say 15 years? Well, so far. With a bit more effort you might find someone with a 20 year honeymoon period?
The overall view seems to be that if you are of normal weight but still need medication, and your historical control is slowly worsening, then you are probably/possibly LADA.
However when you look more detail there are lots of "usually" and "probably" get out clauses.
The most confusing thing is that the honeymoon period can allegedly last for up to 15 years, which is a stark contrast to most diagnoses of T1 for young people where it can present almost overnight.
Then again, unless you are tested for T1 on first diagnosis and then regularly for that 15 years how do they know that you had a 15 year honeymoon period?
How do they know that you didn't have an autoimmune response at year 14?
The tests look for low/no insulin production combined with antibodies which suggest an autoimmune response (but which are not always present).
There is much speculation, including that up to 20% of people initially diagnosed as T2 are in fact T1/LADA.
This does sound suspiciously close to the "Not all T2s are overweight or obese. 20% are normal weight on diagnosis."
My personal situation is, as usual, confusing.
I was diagnosed when I had a rapid weight loss from 14 and a half stone to 14 stone.
Quick calculator says BMI of 27.5 pre diagnosis (14 stone 7 lbs) so overweight but nowhere near obese.
BMI of 26.5 immediately on diagnosis at 14 stone.
Fairly quickly down to 13 stone 7 lbs which is "mildly" overweight.
Target 13 stone 3 lbs on the BMI calculator.
It took me a good while to get an understanding of the diet part of diet and exercise (but remember this was over 11 years ago and understanding of LCHF has moved on a long way since then).
It took me a good long while to get my weight down in the 12 stone 7 lbs region and it is only recently that I have managed to really break through into 11 stone territory (been there before, but not consistently).
I had an IR test a couple of years back, and at that point I had "mild" IR. My insulin production was in the low part of normal and my BG was elevated. Thus IR. However not massive IR coupled with over production of insulin. Then again LCHF which suppresses insulin production.
However "honeymoon period" means that your pancreas is still producing insulin, n'est-ce pas?
So I seem to have low insulin production (which is presumably also slowly declining as I am having to increase my Metformin to the maximum dose) and mild Insulin Resistance but no absolute explanation of why my insulin production is declining.
Is it natural ageing?
Is it long term abnormal BG levels?
Is it an autoimmune response?
Does $DEITY hate me?
I assume a test for antibodies might confirm an autoimmune response of some kind, however also allegedly the lack of antibodies is not conclusive.
So I realise that I could possibly be LADA but does it make much difference?
Apart from adding to some statistics which point to T2 being long term degenerative when instead it could be T1 with a long honeymoon?
Whatever, I assume that the treatment pathway is the same.
So is there any practical benefit to being tested?
Most importantly, do I get to wear the cool T shirt?????
Edit: forgot to say 15 years? Well, so far. With a bit more effort you might find someone with a 20 year honeymoon period?