Type 1 diabetes

Type 1 diabetes is marked by a total or near-total lack of insulin. It results from the body destroying its own insulin producing cells in the pancreas. People with this form of diabetes require daily insulin therapy to survive. Type 1 accounts for around 10-15% of all people with diabetes. It is one of the most serious and common chronic diseases of childhood, with about half of the people with Type 1 diabetes developing the disease before age 18. Type 1 diabetes is sometimes called insulin dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) or juvenile-onset diabetes.

The most recent national estimates of diabetes prevalence come from the 2004-05 National Health Survey, which collected self-reported information. From this survey it was estimated that 91,900 Australians (0.5% of the population) had Type 1 diabetes.