Type 2 Cure? Uh, DUH.

I was forwarded THIS article by my brother-in-law and my good friend, Ryan. They thoughtfully sent this to me, thinking it might be a breakthrough for my Type 1 diabetes. As I read the article I have to admit, I was a little disappointed. From the title, I expected more. Sometimes it bugs me when people don't separate Type 1 from Type 2. (And I'm not talking about my family and friends who thoughtfully sent me the article, I'm talking about the writers and editors of the article).
I weigh less than 140 lbs. and most of the Type 1's that I network with aren't extremely overweight. We'd probably be dead or have failing kidneys, blind, and be limping around on one leg if we were extremely overweight. Because if you are a Type 1 diabetic that was diagnosed in early childhood, like myself, you must keep your sugars low to avoid or delay long term complications. And in order to become obese you have to eat poorly, which would cause your sugars to remain high.

Thus, gastric-bypass surgery is not going to rid ME or ANYONE of Type 1 diabetes. This article talks about the high percentage of people who have reversed their Type 2 diabetes by having lap band or gastric-bypass surgery. To me, this is a complete no brainer. Lose weight, begin to pursue a more active healthy lifestyle = reversing insulin resistance and allowing your pancreas to function more properly. I have known a few folks personally, and read testimonies of hundreds of people with Type 2 diabetes who have gone off all their meds completely, and been able to control their disease simply by living a healthy lifestyle. And I'm not belittling this, it's a huge task, but I'm just saying IT CAN BE DONE. I'm not a doctor granted, but from experiential evidence, I believe Type 2 diabetes can be reversed.

Now I'd be nothing more than a whining dork if I vented about this and left you with no opportunity to learn about the basic differences between Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, so here we go. Here is a pretty decent explanation that sums up the differences that I found on Diabetesplanner.com

Type 1 Diabetes is a disorder in which the body does not produce insulin (a hormone that aids in moving sugar from the blood to the cells). This type of diabetes can be due to a virus or autoimmune disorder in which the body does not recognize an organ as its own and attacks it. In this case the body attacks an organ known as the pancreas where insulin is made.

Those with Type 1 Diabetes are required to take insulin injections to move sugar from the bloodstream. This type of diabetes is usually diagnosed before age 40.

Type 2 Diabetes occurs when insulin that the body produces is less efficient at moving sugar out of the bloodstream. Some sugar is moved out of the blood, just not as effectively compared to a person with normal insulin efficiency. High blood sugars are a result of this.

Diet, exercise, weight loss, and possible medications are the treatment for this type of diabetes. Occasionally, someone with Type 2 may be placed on insulin to better control blood sugars. This type of diabetes is associated with physical inactivity and obesity. Type 2 Diabetes used to be thought of as the adult onset type of diabetes. However, an alarming rate of children are now being diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes.

Notice that LAST statement. More American children are also becoming obese. Connection? Come on people, this isn't rocket science.