A new study indicates that women who have type 1 diabetes have forty percent increased risk of death and double the risk of dying from heart disease than men.
“Type 1 diabetes increases the risk of premature death in both women and men, but type 1 diabetes is much more deadly for women than men with the condition,” said lead researcher Rachel Huxley,
The University of Queensland director of the Queensland Clinical Trials and Biostatistics Center continues, “The findings suggest that young girls and women with type 1 diabetes may need additional monitoring, not only to ensure that they are keeping their blood sugar levels under control, but also to make sure that their levels for other major risk factors, such as blood pressure, are also closely monitored.”
Huxley adds, “As soon as an individual is diagnosed with type 1 diabetes — irrespective of sex — they should receive greater support and assistance in managing their health and risk factor levels for heart disease and stroke.”
Accompanying editorial author Dr. David Simmons remarked, “Among people without diabetes, women live longer than men. This advantage is being lost among women with type 1 diabetes. Both women and men with type 1 diabetes are dying much younger than they should.”
The professor of medicine at the University of Western Sydney in Penrith, Australia, goes on to admit that he does not know why this comparison exists, but suggests that perhaps excess sugar might have a stronger effect on women and men. “There may be a need to treat women earlier with drugs to prevent heart disease and stroke,” he notes.
Simmons goes on to say, “Much of the excess death among men and women is preventable with better access to methods of controlling blood sugar, such as insulin pumps. But we still need to research why these early deaths are happening.”
