Health Tip: Risk Factors for Type 1 Diabetes

(HealthDay News) --Type 1 diabetes, sometimes called juvenile diabetes, affects the amount of insulin produced by the pancreas. Insulin is a hormone that regulates blood sugar levels.

Here is a list of potential risk factors for the disease, courtesy of Aurora Health Care:

• A family history of type 1 diabetes.
• Having another autoimmune disease.
• Being born to an older mother.
• Being born to a mother who had preeclampsia.
• Being of Northern European or Mediterranean descent.
• Certain environmental factors, including stress or exposure to certain toxins.

-- Diana Kohnle

Last Updated: Oct. 17, 2007

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