Noblehead, I was the first in my family to be diabetic type 1 no others. But look at this my mother took a morning sickness drug called Debendox which has links to diabetes, plus I have other problems, and so do my kids, which I finally had to admit to my mum last year after keeping one secret for 13 years. Like your take on it. Let me know what you think, Pm me.
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I don't know anything about the drug Debendox and it's links to diabetes Julie so can't really comment there unfortunately, like you I had no family history (to what I know of) of diabetes in my family and it came as quite a shock to us all.
They do suggest that there's a link between viral infections and diabetes but as I said earlier they are not 100% sure of the answer yet, I was quite well before diagnosis but had mumps as a young child but the gap between the two was something like 12 years:
''.Viruses and infections. A virus cannot cause diabetes on its own, but people are sometimes diagnosed with type 1 diabetes during or after a viral infection, suggesting a link between the two. Also, the onset of type 1 diabetes occurs more frequently during the winter when viral infections are more common. Viruses possibly associated with type 1 diabetes include coxsackievirus B, cytomegalovirus, adenovirus, rubella, and mumps. Scientists have described several ways these viruses may damage or destroy beta cells or possibly trigger an autoimmune response in susceptible people. For example, anti-islet antibodies have been found in patients with congenital rubella syndrome, and cytomegalovirus has been associated with significant beta cell damage and acute pancreatitis––inflammation of the pancreas. Scientists are trying to identify a virus that can cause type 1 diabetes so that a vaccine might be developed to prevent the disease.''
http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/causes/
