My 18 year old daughter, who has had insulin-treated type�2 diabetes for 10 years, has become more insulin resistant recently. I was warned four years ago that this was a highly likely scenario considering her other health problems, but I am concerned about the effects of this resistance and insensitivity. What are the ramifications of a body that no longer can process the insulin being injected? Is systematic organ failure a possibility or probability? Is there a blood test that can assist our doctors in determining how long this phenomenon has been going on and how bad it currently is?

There are a variety of conditions that are associated with insulin resistance that range from the very obscure to the very common. Since I do not know which condition your daughter has, I cannot comment specifically on the relationship with insulin resistance.

In general, insulin resistance is overcome by giving more insulin. Weight loss and diet are capable of reducing insulin resistance in many people. In addition, there are medications that can be used to improve the body’s insulin response. I would say that a person at risk for the greatest health damage are people with high blood sugars resulting from an inability to respond to insulin. The hemoglobin A1c is the best test to evaluate overall level of glucose control and characterize conditions back three months.

JTL