Most people are aware of eating disorders like anorexia
nervosa, and Type 1 diabetes is an ever more prevalent disease as well.
However, the combination of the two can be deadly to an individual who takes
extreme measures to watch their weight. The term diabulimia, though not
recognized as a medical condition, occurs when patients manipulate their
insulin in order to purge calories through urination to lose weight. They do
not have to use laxatives as a patient with bulimia does, because by skipping
their insulin shots or manipulating the insulin pump, the sugars spill into the
urine. Running at high blood sugars on the constant can lead to ketoacidosis, which
poisons the body and can eventually lead to complications including kidney
disease, blindness, nerve damage, amputations and heart disease. A high risk
group is female teens with type 1 diabetes who have a 2.4 times greater risk at
developing the eating disorder. This occurs primarily because weight loss is
often the first symptom of Type 1 diabetes. After beginning insulin treatment
though, they gain weight back and are then encouraged to intently focus on
their diet because of the condition. Treatment is difficult because of the
complexity of both the eating disorder, but there is necessary focus on reading
food labels that comes with Type 1 diabetes. It involves a more intuitive
approach. Both physicians and family members need to assist in looking for
repeated episodes of ketoacidosis or consistently poor blood sugar control.
Fortunately, once patients get help, the risk of long term implications
decreases and it is possible to heal.
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