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Have you always gotten sick easily?

Diamattic

Well-Known Member
Messages
678
Type of diabetes
Type 1
Treatment type
Insulin
One of the first things i was told when diagnosed was that i would catch colds more easily, and they would last longer and be worse then if i didn't have diabetes.

This was a weird concept, because (living life for 29 years without diabetes) i rarely got sick, and hadn't had a flu shot for at least a decade..and now suddenly I am going to start getting sick easily ?

well, I did get my flu shot this year, and did a bit extra to avoid people with colds, so far still nothing... however, my girlfriend has been sick twice this season, and i have not caught it.

So i am wondering, are there any T1D out there who can compare their lives before and after diagnoses in regards to 'catching a cold' ?
Do you find now you do get more, worse, colds?

Or are there T1Ds who still rarely get sick?

Also - is it a scientific fact that being diabetic means weakened immune system? or is that just a myth based on the fact that we have some rogues in bodies shootin' up the place?

Thanks!
 
Really interested to hear the replies to this.

I was only diagnosed in December but had the worst cold/flu of my life a few weeks ago...not sure if it was related...

Usually my colds are very mild and infrequent.
 
I am type 2 and have been since 1997, I've been on insulin before. I have never been a sickly person in my life. If I get a cold it can last 3 weeks or more and that was the same before I was diabetic. I don't have flu injections as I don't believe in it. Can't remember the last time I had a cold to be honest!
 
I'm rarely ill but much like yourself I wasn't ill much before diagnosis, though did have a cold a few weeks ago
 
I'm type 1 for over 9 years. I find I get colds more easily and more often than before I was diagnosed. I also find that I am ill longer than non diabetics.
 
I always felt that colds hung around for quite a long time with me before diagnosis and it's no difference now, I struggle to shake them off and they go through various different stages.

I am asthmatic as well though so always put it down to that.
 

Few illnesses before diabetes, few after... hardly ever off work sick. Other factors have a far greater effect in my experience. It's a little bit of a cup half full vs cup half empty question isn't it?
 
Hi @Diamattic - Well I would say I'm hardly ever I'll. been type1 for 7 years. I take regular exercise, eat well & take vitamins. However I'm currently recovering from flu & I don't remember feeling this poorly for 20 years or so. On the whole I don't get many colds though.
 
In my 26+ years I'd say I was probably off work or school properly ill less than most people. I've been off due to self induced illness too.... But no more than anyone else.

So, no, it hasn't made a difference to me. But maybe I'm just pigheaded and resilient!
 
Before and after diagnosis I have never been a sickly person. very rarely get coughs, colds, never had flu either. But................. I do tend to get hit with other autoimmune conditions and complications set in. So not your average everyday type of bugs and viruses, it the other stuff that causes problems Also, I seem to fight back very quickly from things, that is with my mind and body. So that is probably down to our genes and personalities too

RRB
 
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Haven't had a cold / flu episode since diagnosis 3 years ago. I attribute it to my diet and exercise regime. I'm cycling in all weathers and seasons therefore getting a lot of fresh air. When the whole office is going down with flu / colds I appear to be immune.
 
Rarely got ill before diabetes, rarely get ill now.
Our immune response must be quite good to 'sucessfully' kill off beta cells. It's just that in this case it is the wrong target
However, high glucose levels can though lead to illnesses and infections having more severe results if you have diabetes.
!) White blood cells can't work well to fight infection if glucose levels are high
2) When you have an infection, stress hormones (cortisol and adrenaline) and this raises blood glucose level.
(so it can be circular)
http://www.diabetesselfmanagement.com/managing-diabetes/blood-glucose-management/high-blood-glucose/
 
Hardly ever got sick and haven't been properly sick since.

Seasonal colds have not been noticeably different for me and I still seem to recover faster from them.

My feeling is that this is old advice from when it was not possible to control blood sugar as well as we can with the tools at our disposal today.

So really another example of the medical profession as a whole being behind the times with their advice not matching the treatments, par for the course I guess.

/A
 
I think my illnesses (cold, flu's etc) last longer now than before, but I think that is a combination of getting older, kids and them catching all sorts of stuff from school and the fact I no longer travel into work so not building any resistance (I work from home and rarely go into office 2 or 3 times a year). Had T1 for 38 years (and counting), when I was younger I swear my colds weren't bad as they are now.
 
This is a truly fascinating thread to me. I've probably averaged a cold once every couple of years throughout my life which to be fair often went to my chest as I was a smoker which would result in a prolonged chesty cough but I was never ill enough to justify time off work. Just over 2 years ago at age 42 I was diagnosed with type 1. Like you I was told to prepare for the worst.....Still waiting; worst I've had is a runny nose and no I haven't taken a flu jab. My continuing 'immunity' seems even more incredible given that I am married to a GP who constantly gets the bugs that she is exposed to and brings them home to the kids - but not me. So here is my point. Could there be a group of type 1's who's over active immune system, proven over years of low illness, got bored and decided to have a go at their pancreas, knackered it and left us with type 1. Any thoughts, similar histories, would love to hear from you.
 

My diagnosis came abouts from shock, upset and extreme stress, but I hardly got any 'low illnesses'.
 
I have had type 1 for 33 years. I am on my second cold in the space of about six weeks.

The long term effect of having diabetes results in a weakened immune system. You wont just start getting ill with other things once being diagnosed so long as you keep good control.

I have neuropathy both internal and peripheral. I was alcohol dependent up till 11 years ago and the drinking and the diabetes together have made the nerve damage much worse than if I were to never have had diabetes.

Smoking with diabetes will give you twice as much chance of having heart failure and circulatory problems than if you were just a smoker.

Good control over a long period of time will allow your body to fight illness during that time. Bad control will do the opposite.

It is not a myth, our immune systems do weaken but after 33 years of having it I still work full time and my diabetes has not disabled me in any way up to as yet. If I had continued to drink and smoke I am pretty sure the diabetes would have played its part and I really don't think I'd be here now writing this. A truly grateful diabetic.

The colds go on for weeks though!.
 
Hi. As long as your blood sugar is reasonably well controlled then there is no reason why you should become ill more often. What you were told was a myth.
 
Ive been diabetic for 4 years now and I think I get colds/infections more often than before (about twice a year comparing to once in two years before)
 
I think whoever gave you this advice was misleading you, just because you are type 1 doesn't mean you are destined to become more ill, however if you do fall ill then it affects you differently to non diabetics as uncontrollable blood glucose levels are harder to manage therefore illness can be harder to manage.

Personally I had good health before and am still in good health since diagnosis, no different to a non diabetic
 
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