Husband and Wife type 1 diabetics and Genetics?

[Metcalf]

Both my husband and I are type 1 diabetics.  I am 31 and my husband is 32.  We would like to have a child but I am afraid.
I would be guilt ridden if my child ended up having diabetes, I would feel as though it were my fault and I should have known better.  My husband thinks that I am thinking about it too much and that the good outweighs the bad and that it is not a though we would wnat our child to be a diabetic.  

However, I can not drop that guilt, if goodness forbid, it were to happen, my child may blame me and I would just breakdown.

Am I crazy to feel this way, what would you do?

Is there anyone out there in the same position as me with children, are they diabetics?

Please help!

[JDRF-Team-cg]

Hi Metcalf,
I am also a Type 1 diabetic with a 14 year old daughter. I also worry about passing on the disease. I do not think your feelings are unusual or crazy as you put it. I am only a volunteer here and therefore not qualified to give you statistical or medical advise . I did look on the American Diabetes Association website which had quite a bit of useful information regarding genetics and the risk of passing on the disease. You may want to check it out. www.diabetes.org/genetics.jsp  
Guilt is a very tough emotion to deal with and not one of us diabetic or not has not had to deal with it when it comes to our children. Don't let it get the better of you. By taking the time to get as much knowledge as you can will help you make a decision that will make you and your husband happy. My daughter is not diabetic to date which I am grateful for. But if by some chance she does develop it I would feel confident in the fact that I could help her control it and live a very happy life. After all I would be guiding her with first hand knowledge. Good luck in your decision. All the best Carolyn

[JDRF Team SGG]

I have read studies that discuss the statistics, and it appears that if the mother is a type 1 diabetic, the odds are fairly normal that the children will be healthy (just slightly elevated chance for developing type 1 diabetes), but if the father is a type 1 diabetic, the odds for children being type 1 diabetics rises some. I thought this interesting and suggest that you and your husband do some reading about the genetics so you at least make some educated choices. I happen to be a female type 1 diabetic, and I have two young adult children. Both are healthy, now in their mid-twenties.

Beyond the idea of guilt is of course the reality of what a parent has to do to help a type 1 diabetic child grow up happily and healthily. Since both you and your husband are type 1 diabetics, you know the routine well, and it appears that you are also aware that the genetic markers for type 1 may be passed on to children. I think that before having children, considering the genetic possibilities is smart, and of course you would need to consider whether the two of you would be able to take good care of your own health as well as possibly a child who may need extra health if type 1 diabetes cropped up. So the question goes beyond guilt to be a real question of whether you and your husband could carry the extra responsibility for managing the glucose levels of a little one if you needed to.

Another article that I read about genetics and type 1 diabetes stated that in cases of identical twins who carry of course identical genes, if one twin becomes a type 1 diabetic, only 50 percent of the second twins become type 1 diabetics. This is because there must be a trigger virus to happen to the person to start the immune system on its attack on the pancreas. So genetics aren't the only factor involved in becoming a type 1 diabetic. Good luck to both you and your husband in making this decision.

[Larry68]

Please take a look at this link ( http://www.com.msu.edu/aa/unitI/OST501/Diabetes/Chap4.shtml ) for good information on the causes and susceptibility to T1DM. I grew up believing the old theory that two T1 diabetics would always produce a diabetic child. The odds are actually much lower (1:4 down to 1:10), and depend on diverse genetic factors including race and ethnicity. I am T1 since age 13 and am lucky enough to be of Scandinavian decent, so I am probably the proud owner of the most dangerous genes HLADR3 and HLADR4. With that said, I have a son (with a non-diabetic wife)  who will carry on my legacy, and that of my father. He has made my life meaningful and given me a grandson (another on the way). He has not developed diabetes, and though he believed he was at risk growing up, he never believed that “being like his dad” would be a punishment. He loves me for who I am. I took a big risk having a child, as I and everyone else believed. It was worth that risk to have a child, no matter which way it may have turned out. The risk today is known to be low, and the prognosis for a T1 child, with proper medical and emotional care, is extremely good. Consider you choice carefully, and do not feel guilt should a child become diabetic. The bond between a parent and child is stronger than this, and many other even more difficult burdens in life.