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Insulin tablets show potential to delay onset of diabetes

Category: Diabetes

People hoping to avoid a positive result from blood testing for type 1 diabetes may be able to prevent the onset of the condition with oral insulin tablets, according to a new study from the American Diabetes Association (ADA).

Unlike type 2 diabetes, the other form of insulin deficiency usually occurs in children and adolescents. Whereas type 2 diabetes develops when cells cannot correctly use insulin, type 1 diabetes involves the body being unable to produce insulin at all. Type 1 diabetics only account for 5 percent of the total number of individuals dealing with insulin problems according to the ADA.

"If a person has two autoantibodies and one of them is against insulin, there is a 50 percent risk that they will develop type 1 diabetes within five years. There are indications that oral insulin may prevent or delay the clinical onset," said Ake Lernmark, quoted by Medical Xpress.

For this study, the ADA surveyed almost 375 individuals at risk for developing type 1 diabetes for almost 10 years. Individuals who remained on oral insulin treatment had a reduced chance of losing their ability to produce insulin, which would have led to an unfavorable result from diabetes blood testing.