Does having relative w/ type 2 increase risk for type 1? and more questions

[jilllf]

My father in law has type 2 diabetes.  He is concerned with the amount of drinking my son is doing.   Can type 2 increase the risk for my son having type 1?  Also can symtoms come and go?  For example drink a ton one day, but not for a couple of days, then drink a lot again?  For a first step should we check him with FIL meter or take him to the dr.?  My father in law helped get my nephew diagnonsed (no blood relation to my son) so he knows signs and is concerned about them.  What are the signs of high blood sugar beyond the usual thirst, urination, if there are any?  Thanks!!!

[wolfenastar]

I would suggest you have him checked by a doctor. When my daughter was diagnosed she only had flu like symptoms.
My daughters grandmother (fathers side) is a type 2 and my grandmother and great grandmother were also diabetic (type 1 & 2).
The best advise is to seek a doctor's help. Make sure you let the doctor know why you are concerned and the family history of diabetes. Better safe than sorry.

[JDRF-Team-LRS]

As you know, none of us is a medical professional, so it's best to check in with your son's physician especially if you want to pursue any suggestions you read about here or on the internet.  

There are lots of reasons why a healthy child might drink a lot of water one day & not on others -- activity differences, weather differences, partial dehydration due to activity or over-consumption of caffeinated beverages.  Excessive thirst is also one of several classic symptoms of diabetes, so it's quite reasonable to do periodic BG tests with your FIL meter (using a fresh lancet in the device, of course).  As SS points out, you can use this to either quiet your concerns or to begin to document patterns.

Type 1 diabetes is often diagnosed "suddenly" but many folks will have -- in hindsight -- begun to develop symptoms that just didn't get caught early.  If a person is heading toward diabetes, the pancreas' function may be sporadic and so symptoms could be present sometimes (when the beta cells are stressed) and absent in others.  

While I sincerely hope your son is diabetic, an early diagnosis offers new promise of good treatment and even potential to participate in interventions to stave it off or delay it for a long long time.  Good luck.  I hope you'll check in again to let us know how things are going.

Your family is fortunate to have your FIL be so well informed & motivated to watch out for the family.

[jilllf]

BTW my son is 4.

[JDRF-Team-SS]

Hello jilllf,

I am a volunteer, not a medical professional, so always follow up with your son's physician.

Type 1 & type 2 are diferent, so there is not a connection that I know of.  (anyone feel free to cooment if you know otherwise)

My son is living with type 1.  He is 10 now, but was diagnosed at age 3.  Periodically, my daughter (non-diabetic) has had excessive thirst and I have used my son's glucometer (with a new lancet, of course) to test my daughter when I notice this symptom.  She has had some blood sugars that are slightly elevated.

I spoke with my son's endocrinologist about this and he said that insulin production would have to slow down up to 80% before you really noticed high blood sugars being steady. The occasional elevated BG's that I have seen in my daughter could or could not be the VERY early stage of type 1.

My suggestion is for you to do what I am doing.  When you notice this extreme thirst, test your son and see what his readng is.  There is no harm in it and no harm in making an appointment with your son's doctor to discuss the symptoms you have noticed.  (Better safe than sorry)

Here are some symptoms of high blood sugar:

- Extreme thirst
- Excessive urination & large amounts
- Hunger
- Blurred vision
- Fatigue
- Weight loss
- Poor wound healing (cuts, scrapes, etc.)
- Dry mouth
- Dry or itchy skin

A great site to visit is www.diabetes.org
Click on "All About Diabetes" on the left side of the page

Take care

SS