Type 1 Diabetes: Cause
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Cause
Type 1 diabetes develops because the body's immune system destroys the beta cells which are in the islet tissue in the pancreas 
. These beta cells produce insulin. So people with type 1 diabetes cannot make their own insulin.
You can inherit a tendency to develop type 1 diabetes, but most people who have the disease have no family history of it. Diabetes experts believe that a genetic tendency and some environmental factors may increase the risk of developing type 1 diabetes. Possible environmental factors include enteroviral infections—especially Coxsackie B infections.
Despite concerns about vaccines (particularly those against whooping cough and Haemophilus influenza B, or Hib), studies have not found a relationship between being vaccinated and developing type 1 diabetes.1
| Last updated: | September 17, 2008 |
|---|---|
| Author: | Caroline Rea, RN, BS, MS |
| Reviewed By: | Caroline S. Rhoads, MD - Internal Medicine, Matthew I. Kim, MD - Endocrinology & Metabolism |
| Editors: | Susan Van Houten, RN, BSN, MBA, Pat Truman, MATC |
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