Life expectancy can be improved after type 1 diabetes

A new study from the UK proves that in the population of Scotland, UK, life expectancy for people with type 1 diabetes has improved substantially and this improvement should now be reflected in life insurance and other relevant policies for those with the condition. The research is by, Professor Helen Colhoun and Shona Livingstone, University of Dundee, UK and colleagues on behalf of the Scottish Diabetes Research Network and is presented at this year's annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) in Barcelona, Spain. “Historically those with type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) have been reported to have a reduced life expectancy compared to the general population but estimates are seldom based on contemporary data”, says Professor Colhoun. “Given advances in medical care we sought to determine current life expectancy (LE) in people with T1DM in Scotland”. “There are surprisingly few large scale assessments of life expectancy in the historical literature”, explains Dr Livingstone.