I am a newly diagnosed Diabetes Type 2. I suspect I have may had the disease for quite sometime since my A1c was 10.4. I am currently taking medication , diet and exercise. I come from a third world country that has poor health services but currently I am in America. I will be returning home soon. I have NO problems taking medication and doing what the Doctors has prescribed. My question is are there people out there with Type 2 who have never required insuline as part of their treatment for more than 20 years? I read somewhere that most people with Type 2 will gradually require insulin as part of their treatment if so than what would be the average time before that happens? I am concern because I may not have access to insulin in my country and If I do than I may have to be hospitalised for them to adminster it. I would prefer treating and managing it my self with medication.

Mike Type 2 Feb 2005

Mike,
In the old days, when there was only one type of medication to treat T2, many T2's did, in fact, become insulin dependent fairly quickly. The old medications were mostly sulfonyurea's, which acted by causing the pancreas to secrete more insulin. They put quite a strain on the insulin--producing (beta) cells of the pancreas, and tended to cause burnout of the cells very quickly.

Now there are other medications that work by decreasing the tissue's resistance to insulin. Those medications (I believe both Metformin and Avandia are two), along with diet an exercise, can dramatically extend the length of time before insulin is needed and, in some cases, can prevent the need to ever use insulin.

Ruth