What is it?

Sugar is in everything we eat, and every cell in our body needs it for energy. When we eat sugar, it moves from the digestive tract to the bloodstream. In order to get from the blood into the cells it needs a key- this key is insulin.
If you have type 1 diabetes, your pancreas does not produce any insulin, or produces a very small amount. Due to the lack of insulin, the sugar does not enter the cells, and remains in your bloodstream causing high blood sugar levels.
Type 1 diabetes (previously called insulin-dependent or juvenile diabetes) is usually diagnosed in children, teens, and young adults, but it can develop at any age.
The exact cause of type 1 diabetes is unknown, but it is thought to be an autoimmune disease where the body attacks itself by mistake and destroys the pancreas cells.
Over time, high blood sugar levels can cause serious health problems, such as heart disease, vision loss, and kidney disease.

Latent autoimmune diabetes in adults (LADA) is a slowly progressing type of autoimmune diabetes, resembling type 1 diabetes. In LADA, similar to T1D, the pancreas does not make sufficient insulin. Unlike T1D, treatment with insulin is not needed at the beginning but rather in more advanced stages of the disease. LADA is also known as diabetes type 1.5, and it is typically diagnosed after the age of 30.