Should Type 1's Have Children?

[Type1Wife]

Hello,
My husband was diagnosed with Type 1 at age 29. Thanks to Lantus, Metformin and a very smart diet he has his numbers under control & very rarely has issues. We had our son just months before he was diagnosed and had always planned to have a second child. Now we have reservations about growing our family.
What is the lieklihood that our children will inherit the disease?
Would it be irresponsible to try for another child?
How do other couples make this decision?

Thanks,
Confused Mom

[Type1Wife]

Hy husband is usually boarderling on underweight. He was diagnosed less than two years ago, so indeed we may still be in the honeymoon phase. One of the symptoms that lead to our discovering the issue was a suddon weight loss of 60 lbs over the course of a few months. It wasn't until he woke up one morning and said he could not go for his daily run becuase his legs were too tingly and his eyes could not focus that we put it all together. I guess we should have see it coming a little sooner.
Again, thanks for all the insight.

[Zoelula]

Another bit of left field input. It is interesting to me that your husband is doing well on only Lantus and Metformin which is a type 2 oral med. Most type 1's need a bolus (fast-acting) insulin before meals as well or they are high two hours after eating (over 140). You don't say how long your husband has been diagnosed, he could still be in his honeymoon period. But if he is overweight you might want to clarify that he is not, in fact type 2. (antibody tests would confirm).

[Type1Wife]

Thank you so much for your responses. This is really weighing on our family a lot right now and it is nice to have feedback from someone outside of our inner circle. I really appreciate you finding & sharing what you did! We will definitely be checking with our Endo.

[Zoelula]

Ok, I found some stats on the ADA website. It said if the man alone has type 1, the chances in general are 1 in 17. This figure is doubled if he got diagnosed before age 11. But it also said there are several mitigating circumstances to alter this number. It also said that genetic testing could be done to determine the risk, but I'm not sure if that was in vitro or with a living child. Again, talk to your endo.

[Zoelula]

I did a brief search on this topic and was unable to come up with any stats, but what I did read is that the genetics of type 1 is complex, and what is inherited is a genetic predisposition which must be triggered by an environmental factor. I suggest you talk with your endo if you want more accurate information about risk.

However, here is my opinion. Type 1 diabetes, as you know is a manageable condition. It is certainly life changing for a child and for the family, but it is not life threatening if well managed. Also new technology to manage diabetes is being developed all the time and perhaps there will be a true cure in the life of someone born today. So if you really want to have another child and feel you could handle it if they were diagnosed with type 1, I wouldn't hesitate to do so.

But if you are concerned and feel strongly that you don't want to risk this for your child and your family, and you will be anxious throughtout pregnancy and childhood, then those feelings should be respected and you might want to consider adoption. It is my opinion (and only mine, others may not agree), that there are so many healthy and wonderful little people already in the world that need a home and loving parents, so why not adopt one?

[Super_sally888]

Hi,

The risk of another baby having diabetes is pretty low.  (you can research, but somewhere in the range of 1 -5%, if I remember rightly).  Life is a lotto!  It may be diabetes, it may not, or it may be something completely different.  I think if you want another child go for it.  You are in an ideal situation to educated any child on healthy lifestyle.