Type 1 diabetes more dangerous for women, study finds

Type 1 diabetes is more dangerous for women than men, new research suggests.

In a study published in The Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology, researchers found that female patients have a 40 per cent increased risk of death from any cause and are twice as likely to die from heart disease than men with the same condition.

Scientists at the University of Queensland in Australia analysed data from 26 studies involving more than 200,000 men and women with type 1 diabetes.

The study also found that women with the condition were at greater risk of strokes and were 44 per cent more likely to die from kidney disease.

Lead researcher Prof Rachel Huxley said: "We already knew that people with type 1 diabetes have shorter life expectancies than the general population, but this study was able to determine for the first time that the risk of mortality is greater in women than men with the disease.

“It is speculated that women with type 1 diabetes tend to have greater difficulties with insulin management and glycaemic control than men, factors that could contribute to their increased risk of heart disease.

Prof Huxley said that more research was needed to determine the exact cause of the difference between the sexes.

Type 1 diabetes was not linked to an increased risk of death from cancers in either gender, she said.

PA