Total Pageviews

7,772,383

Saturday, 19 April 2025

DIABETES NEWS : New form of diabetes recognised, affecting millions worldwide

 New form of diabetes recognised, affecting millions worldwide

  • A new type of diabetes, Type 5, has been officially recognised by the International Diabetes Federation.
  • Unlike Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes, Type 5 is linked to malnutrition, not obesity. It affects an estimated 25 million people globally, primarily young, lean individuals in low and middle-income countries.
  • It is an inherited condition caused by a genetic mutation that impairs insulin production.
  • Misdiagnosis as Type 1 diabetes is common and dangerous, as excessive insulin can be fatal for Type 5 patients.
While the exact treatment is still being researched, dietary adjustments with higher protein and lower carbohydrates, along with addressing micronutrient deficiencies, are recommended.


What is Type 5 diabetes? New form of disease recognised after decades of debate. 

A new type of diabetes that’s linked not to obesity but to malnutrition has been officially recognised, decades after it was first observed in developing countries.

The International Diabetes Federation (IDF) this month officially recognised the disease as "Type 5 diabetes" or Maturity Onset Diabetes of the Young (Mody).

The rare form of diabetes is believed to affect about 25 million people globally, and is caused by malnutrition-induced low insulin production among lean and malnourished teenagers and young adults in low and middle-income households, according to reports.

The new disease, distinct from Type 1 and 2 diabetes, was officially recognised through a vote on 8 April at the IDF's World Diabetes Congress in Bangkok, Thailand following years of debate over its identification.

Meredith Hawkins, professor of medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, said malnutrition-related diabetes “has historically been vastly underdiagnosed and poorly understood”.

"The IDF’s recognition of it as ‘Type 5 diabetes’ is an important step toward raising awareness of a health problem that is so devastating to so many people."

Type 5 diabetes is a rare, inherited form of the disease that develops in the early teens or 20s in people who have a genetic mutation passed from parent to child. If a parent has the affected gene, their children have a 50 per cent chance of also being carriers.

It is not caused by being obese or through lifestyle choices. Mody is estimated to affect up to 25 million people globally, mainly young men in Asia and Africa with a body mass index less than 19kg/m2, according to experts.

Nihal Thomas, professor of endocrinology at Christian Medical College in India and a member of the Type 5 Diabetes Working Group, said the disease causes pancreatic beta cells to function abnormally, which leads to insufficient production of insulin. “Due to the lack of formal recognition, this condition has been understudied and misdiagnosed,” he was quoted by The Indian Express as saying.

Mody was first described in Jamaica in 1955. Three decades later, the World Health Organization officially classified “malnutrition-related diabetes mellitus” as a distinct diabetes type, before dropping the category in 1999 due to a lack of evidence.

Patients are often misdiagnosed as having Type 1 diabetes despite the fact that providing them too much insulin can rapidly prove fatal, Dr Hawkins told Medscape Medical News.

"Malnutrition-related diabetes is more common than tuberculosis and nearly as common as HIV/AIDS, but the lack of an official name has hindered efforts to diagnose patients or find effective therapies," Dr Hawkins said.

Dr Hawkins said she first learned of malnutrition-related diabetes in 2005 while teaching at global health meeting, when doctors from multiple countries told her they were seeing patients with "an unusual form of diabetes".

"The patients were young and thin, which suggested that they had Type 1 diabetes, which can be managed with insulin injections to regulate blood sugar levels. But insulin didn't help these patients and in some cases caused dangerously low blood sugar," she said, according to Medical Express.

The patients did not seem to have Type 2 diabetes either, with is typically associated with obesity, she said, adding: "It was very confusing."

Dr Hawkins founded Einstein's Global Diabetes Institute in 2010, which began leading international efforts to uncover the underlying metabolic defects that leads to malnutrition-related diabetes. More than a decade later in 2022, Dr Hawkins and her colleagues at the Christian Medical College demonstrated that this form of diabetes was fundamentally different from Type 1 and 2.

She said people with this form of diabetes have a profound defect in the capacity to secrete insulin, which wasn't recognised before. "This finding has revolutionised how we think about this condition and how we should treat it."

Doctors worldwide are still unsure how to treat these patients, who often don't live for more than a year after diagnosis, according to Dr Hawkins.

She added that to manage Type 5 diabetes, the patients should include much higher amounts of protein and lower amounts of carbohydrates in their diet, while paying attention to deficient micronutrients. "But this needs to be carefully studied now that there is global will and an official mandate from [IDF] to do so.”
Words above taken from article seen here


Other Types Of Diabetes
While type 1, type 2 and gestational diabetes are the most common forms of diabetes diagnosis, other types of diabetes are just as important. About 1.5-2% of people live with rare forms of diabetes, which can be grouped into nine categories.

Although less common, these types of diabetes still pose a significant health threat. By understanding them, we can better support those affected by this condition.
You can read more about these other forms of diabetes using this link here

Please note that articles within this blog are provided for general information only and should not be treated as a substitute for the medical advice of your own doctor or any other health care professional. If you have any concerns about your general health, you should contact your local health care provider.

All the best Jan

28 comments:

Elephant's Child said...

That is dreadful news. I so hope that it can now be better recognised and treated.

Anonymous said...

I didn't know there are nine categories of diabetes.

Tina

Mari said...

That's very interesting, first time I heard this. Thanks for the info.

Tom said...

...this is tragic.

J.P. Alexander said...

Gracias por la información. Te mando un beso.

Granny Marigold said...

Thanks for this information on the new form of diabetes. It's good to be aware of new 'discoveries'.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for this new information. -Christine cmlk79.blogspot.com

roentare said...

The IDF’s recognition of Type 5 diabetes marks a vital step toward understanding and addressing a long-overlooked, malnutrition-related form of the disease affecting millions, underscoring the need for targeted research, better diagnosis, and global health equity.

Linda said...

Interesting.

Katerinas Blog said...

I didn't know there were so many types of diabetes either.
Thanks for the valuable information!!

Vicky Cahyagi said...

Good info about diabetes news. Have a nice weekend ok

Ananka said...

I was reading about that earlier. Sad

jabblog said...

How extraordinary. It has taken a very long time to accurately define type 9 diabetes. The prognosis is certainly very poor.

Margaret D said...

I too didn't know there are so many types of Diabetes. Good article to read Jan.
Have a nice Easter and take care.

Bijoux said...

I’ve never heard of that. I’m glad it’s now recognized.

Anonymous said...

I didn't know diabetes are so complicated.

roughterrain crane said...

I didn't know diabetes is so complicated.

gluten Free A_Z Blog said...

Excellent information. Thank you.

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

I'm always learning. I've been tested for diabetes and don't have it. But I sure can't eat sugar without a terrible reaction. Thanks for sharing this info!

Lowcarb team member said...

REPLY TO
Chatty Crone who said...
When I tried to leave a comment on the last one it brought me here. Happy Easter and is there a type 3 and 4?

Hello ... I copied and pasted this comment which yes also appears on my Happy Easter post.
In answer to your question yes there is type 3 and 4.
In fact there are actually nine categories of Diabetes which you can read about using this link here

https://idf.org/about-diabetes/types-of-diabetes/rare-forms-of-diabetes/

All the best Jan

Linda's Relaxing Lair said...

I have been pre-diabetic for about a decade now. My father was diabetic...Type 2, and sadly died of a heart attack in 1984 at the age of 64. I am 68 and weigh 127 lbs, and try to eat healthy as much as I can, which is probably why I am not diabetic...yet. I really appreciate all the information you share, as I am learning so much. Happy Easter to you and God bless you.

Susan Kane said...

There were a few students from over the years who would surely fit type 5. One boy clearly had all the symptoms of a diabetic, but his tests were normal. He was 9 years old. I wonder where and how he is.

Back2OurSmallCorner said...

Good that this type of diabetes has finally been recognised and I hope more research and funding is made available to help those most in need.

Conniecrafter said...

Oh wow it is good they have realized this but I hope they can soon find.a cure for these young ones getting this!

Linda said...

Oh my! It is difficult for experts to admit that there was something they overlooked. I’m glad this has come to light.

baili said...

Yes this is frightening how new types are diseases are being diagnosed.
Reason mentioned behind it is even more alarming
I really hope we all look for to keep check on our day to day health conditions and what seems to affect them
Blessings ♥️

William Kendall said...

Thanks for the information.

Teresa said...

Siempre interesante. Mi marido es diabético. Besos.