A very promising vaccine is in development in the U.K. and its promise is to prevent diabetes type 1, the most difficult to treat, also known as Diabetes Insipidus.
The program is the largest ever undertaken by health authorities in the UK. The vaccine is supposed to be available within the next two decades. But if successful it could wipe out Diabetes 1 as we know it, and would be particularly useful for childhood onset diabetes.
Just in the UK, the number of people suffering from the disease is more than 300,000. In the United States, the number is ten fold: 3,000,000.
Diabetes 1 is a disease than develops when the body's own immune systems shuts down the insulin producing cells in the pancreas, leading to a rise in the blood sugar level that is fatal if left untreated. And since this type of diabetes is not preventable, there is nothing one can do to avoid it or ameliorate the condition, unlike Diabetes Mellitus, or type 2, which is often seen in cases where overweight or poor diet is a problem.
The initial batches of the vaccine will probably slow down the onset of the disease, rather than erase it. But further development of the vaccine could stave off the onset indefinitely.
This is the first trial of vaccines against Diabetes that is showing promise. Prior attempts had failed.
Source : MNT 5.13.13
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