What are the chances of type 1 diabetes , if we have child ?

[deven88]

Dear all,

I and my wife have type-1 diabetes since last 16 years. We married three years ago. Now we want to have a child. But in one of the articles from American diabetes association, They have mentioned chances of type one diabetes in the child. My anti-thyroid antibody test is positive. If we have a child, it will have 50% chances of type-1 diabetes as per the article. It is a very high probability.

Any of you does know about similar kind of study done by others? I want to cross-check before taking any decisions
I have heard from somebody that this study has been focused on North American people and the probability will differ for south Asian people. (We are from India). Does anybody know about probability in case of South Asian or Indian?
Do you know any parents who are diabetic and having diabetic or non-diabetic child?

We really want know the probability of type 1 diabetes of our child if we have.

Thanks for reading and we will be very much grateful who can provide any helpful information.

Reference:
(1)Link for American Diabetes Association Article: Please check Type 1 Diabetes: Your Child's Risk
(2)Highlighted part in pdf

Please ignore typo and grammar.

Thanks and regards,
Deven

 

[azure]

Welcome @deven88

The study you linked to is the one I've seen quoted a lot. However, I don't know of any study specifically on South Asian people, and it's possible the odds could be different. Do either you or your wife have a knowledgeable consultant you could discuss this with? I believe the odds also vary depending on the age you and your wife developed diabetes.

I'm going to move your thread to the Type 1 section as it may get more responses there from other Type 1s who have or are thinking about children

 

[tim2000s]

At a JDRF meeting in November last year I asked a similar question of the speaking doctor. His statement was that there was a 40%-70% likelihood of developing T1 if one parent was T1. This seems to be in line with the study quoted.

 

[ewelina]

Its all very confusing. Here they say its 7% if father is type 1 and 2% if mother

http://www.webmd.com/diabetes/video/kahn-children-always-inherit-type-1-diabetes

 

[Pinkorchid]

When my son was diagnosed with T1 he asked his consultant what the chances were of his children developing it and he was told virtually none as T1 is not hereditary. His children are in their late 20's now and still no diabetes

 

[Brunneria]

I saw a very interesting you tube video by The Fat Emperor, giving masses of info on Vitamin D deficiency.
Embedded deeply into it, was the fascinating snippet that the odds of developing an autoimmune disease (incl T1 diabetes, and MS, amongst MANY others) has now been linked to amount of Vit D (sun exposure) before 16 years old.
That included the amount of Vit D supplementation given to the mother during pregnancy, to the baby and child, and to their outdoor sun exposure. After 16 years, the risks from Vit D deficiency change somewhat.

You may find the whole video an interesting view:

 

[Daibell]

When my son was diagnosed with T1 he asked his consultant what the chances were of his children developing it and he was told virtually none as T1 is not hereditary. His children are in their late 20's now and still no diabetes

I suspect T1 is to some extent hereditary as it does depend on the genes to at least some extent, so I think the consultant would be wrong.

 

[tim2000s]

Based on the data at this link, http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/genetics-of-diabetes.html there is a very clear hereditary link, however we don't yet know which genes it is linked to. I've also cut and pasted the information below:

In general, if you are a man with type 1 diabetes, the odds of your child developing diabetes are 1 in 17.

If you are a woman with type 1 diabetes and your child was born before you were 25, your child's risk is 1 in 25; if your child was born after you turned 25, your child's risk is 1 in 100.

Your child's risk is doubled if you developed diabetes before age 11. If both you and your partner have type 1 diabetes, the risk is between 1 in 10 and 1 in 4.

There is an exception to these numbers. About 1 in every 7 people with type 1 diabetes has a condition called type 2 polyglandular autoimmune syndrome. In addition to having diabetes, these people also have thyroid disease and a poorly working adrenal gland. Some also have other immune system disorders. If you have this syndrome, your child's risk of getting the syndrome — including type 1 diabetes — is 1 in 2.

Researchers are learning how to predict a person's odds of getting diabetes. For example, most whites with type 1 diabetes have genes called HLA-DR3 or HLA-DR4. If you and your child are white and share these genes, your child's risk is higher. (Suspect genes in other ethnic groups are less well studied. The HLA-DR7 gene may put African Americans at risk, and the HLA-DR9 gene may put Japanese at risk.)

Other tests can also make your child's risk clearer. A special test that tells how the body responds to glucose can tell which school-aged children are most at risk.

Another more expensive test can be done for children who have siblings with type 1 diabetes. This test measures antibodies to insulin, to islet cells in the pancreas, or to an enzyme called glutamic acid decarboxylase. High levels can indicate that a child has a higher risk of developing type 1 diabetes.

- See more at: http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-ba...ttps://www.google.co.uk/#sthash.6EqVUlNm.dpuf

 

[azure]

I suspect T1 is to some extent hereditary as it does depend on the genes to at least some extent, so I think the consultant would be wrong.

I was told that some cases of Type 1 are hereditary (strong family links) but most cases of Type 1 arent. When I was diagnosed, my consultant told me that 'normal' Type 1 was 20% genetic 80% environmental. It's interesting to note that most people with the 'diabetes genes' do not develop Type 1. I think I read 1 in 10 develop it, but I'm not sure of that figure.

@tim2000s Yes, when I asked about my children, I was told they had a 1 in 100 risk.

Edited to add - I was also told breastfeeding them for at least 6 months would reduce their risk further, and with my current child I've been told to give Vit D, so there are things you can do to try to reduce the risk.

 

[noblehead]

Its all very confusing. Here they say its 7% if father is type 1 and 2% if mother

http://www.webmd.com/diabetes/video/kahn-children-always-inherit-type-1-diabetes

Yes those are the figures that I've seen before and my own Dr referred to them when I asked about hereditary risks .

@deven88, I'm not from South Asia but I never let diabetes get in the way of having children, yes there's a small risk that they might develop diabetes but there's a greater chance that they won't, but as responsible adults it is only human nature that we worry about these things.

 

[phoenix]

My anti-thyroid antibody test is positive. If we have a child, it will have 50% chances of type-1 diabetes as per the article. It is a very high probability

.

The bit in the ADA link about a much higher risk in someone who has polyglandular autoimmune syndrome isn't 'just' autoimmune thyroid disease and type one, there is a third element mentioned adrenal insufficiency ie Addison's disease.
There are many T1s that have thyroid disease, far fewer that also have Addison's. http://www.diapedia.org/other-types-of-diabetes-mellitus/4104673132/polyendocrine-syndromes (I don't think that I have come across any studies of genetic susceptibility in Asian populations as you say, they are often in the US, though also Scandinavia)


Genes are important but unlike MODY, T1 is polygenic involving the interaction of many genes not just one. Genes that make people susceptible are those that influence the immune system (HLA sytem https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_leukocyte_antigen ) but there are also many other genes elsewhere have been implicated.


As Azure says it's not all genetic. If you were a monozygotic twin (ie identical genes) and developed T1, then the concordance rate ,ie the likelihood that your sibling will also develop it , is somewhere between 40 and 60% .The percentage, depends on study and how long they follow up for; a US study has found some cases where the 2nd twin develops it over 30 years after the first and most studies have been very much shorter than that. If you are a dizygotic twin (ie.each twin has received a different mix of genes from their parents so non indentical) , the concordance rate is quite low at between 5-10%.If T1 were completely genetic the monozygotic rate would be nearer 100% and the dizygotic one much higher.

What triggers the development of susceptibility is something that people have been researching for years. Vit D as above, is often mentioned and it fits nicely when you look at the statistics Finland and other Northerly countries having high rates .Then you get an area like Sardinia an Island in the Med, with no shortage of sun, yet has almost as high a rate as Finland, ( this cohort study in Sardinia is investing a variety of possible triggers ) http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2956826/

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