A freind of mine has a serious problem with alcohol. Recently his family sent him away to someplace for intense treatment. After he was there about a week, he had a diabetic sezure and was sent home. As far as I know none of his family has diabetes. Is it possible for his excessive (we’re talking really really excessive) drinking to trigger diabetes? It almost seems as if his body was getting use to the excess calory intake from the alcohol and when it was suddenly taken away his body reacted.
I have type 2 diabetes. I’ve never heard of alcohol causing the diabetes. In fact, some studies have shown that small amounts can be beneficial. Check with the ADA for more reliable info.
Sometimes family members haven’t been diagnosed, but do have it.
Good luck to your friend. 
Peace,
mangeorge
Alcohol often is responsible for adult cases of diabetes.
It does this most commonly by way of causing repeated bouts of alcoholic pancreatitis, which slowly diminishes the pancreas’ ability to produce insulin.
This type of diabetes more resembles type I than type II: generally pills don’t work to get it under control very well, and insulin must be used.
People who have had episodes of alcoholic pancreatitis really need to stop drinking, as their pancreas is at high risk. Not only will one end up on insulin shots if things go badly, but they’ll need to take digestive enzymes whenever they eat in order to absorb their food.
That is, if they survive the pancreatitis, which is often fatal in its own right.
I don’t know what to do about him. I live a long way away from him. He has completely lost track of the amount he drinks by going to hard alcohol. I hope he can stay clean, but my hopes aren’t high.
They are currently trying pills. He tests his blood sugar level three times a day. Even if he makes it he’s got that problem of finding a job after being fired from three jobs for drinking on the job.
Yeah, I was thinking of type 2, where insulin production isn’t the problem. Selfish of me to think only of my own problem. The damage to the pancreas is irreversible, isn’t it?
Thanks, doc, for the clarification.
There’s nothing you can do. You didn’t cause his drinking problem, you can’t cure it, and you can’t control it.
He may yet recover.
In addition to what Qad said, I’ll note that alcohol-induced liver cirrhosis (or, for that matter, any type of cirrhosis) can lead to increased blood sugar and even frank diabetes. This is a textbook sort of fact, so it’s not that easy to come up with a concise web-link or journal reference. That, coupled with my laziness, leads me to offer only these references (and from some rather obscure journals at that).
Liver disease and diabetes I (best reference)
Liver disease and diabetes III.
So, if your friend had cirrhosis from his alcohol use, then, yes, that could certainly lead to diabetes.
Now, you may wonder: Is alcohol (ab)use per se, in the absence of cirrhossis, associated with diabetes? And the answer is probably no (so long as we’re talking about no more than “moderate” alcohol consumption).
Alcohol may protect against diabetes I (see 3rd last sentence)
Well, in Type II, eventually insulin production tends to drop off, too. The poor pancreas cranks out more and more insulin, but the body doesn’t respond normally to it. So eventually the pancreas may say “go bugger” and pack it in.
That’s why so many Type IIs end up on lnsulin, along with meds that make their body use the insulin on board more effectively.
In cases of pancreatitis, the pancreas can recover. But it’s usually never quite as good at making insulin as it was before. And repeated bouts continue to reduce its effectiveness.
Oh yeah, what KarlGauss said, too!
Hey, KG! Seen many cases of cirrhosis-induced AV shunting with hypoxia? I’ve a guy with normal PFTs who needs oxygen due to this phenomenon!
It sounds to me like the pills he’s taking are lowering his blood sugar level. I haven’t spoken to him recently, but it seems to me that he didn’t want to take a dose because his blood sugar was already too low. I don’t know that he knows what he’s doing either.
ETA: This guy was really drinking a lot. Definitely toxic amounts.
I should add that while pancreatitis is the cause of less than 1% of diabetes cases, 80% of those with chronic pancreatitis go on to develop diabetes.
http://www.pancreasweb.com/pdf/FreiburgReport.pdf
While hyperglycemia (diabetes) can certainly cause seizures with often profound electrolyte abnormalities. In the setting of alcoholism I’d be concerned first about a seizure due to hypoglycemia.
Back in the early 70’s my uncle Hubert Lee [everybody called him Buzz … he hated his names!] had a bout of diabetic pancreatitis that about capped him. He came for the thanksgiving weekend and left for home after Labor day. Apparently it was pretty close to dying for him. I shudder to think what his ICU bill was, he was in teh ICU for something like 3 months :eek:
I am the only other one in the family to be a diabetic, and apparently mine is related to the 3 instances of gestational diabetes I went through as nobody else has it at all. Parkinsons runs in the family [46 years and no shakes, knock wood!] , and 1 case of alzheimers…