US Senator James Talarico reveals unexpected role politics played in his Type 1 diabetes diagnosis
Texas Senator James Talarico has spoken about a medical emergency that struck while he was campaigning for a seat in the Texas House of Representatives in 2018.
The newest US senator from Texas told a recent CNN & Jubilee town hall that the episode ended with a diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes. It is a condition with no cure.
"I was lucky to be alive. The nurses and the doctors in Williamson County saved my life," he said.
"I was perfectly healthy and I decided to do something a little unusual," he said, recalling that first run for office. He set out to walk the entire length of his legislative district, a 25-mile route that he covered on foot in one day in the Texas heat, with three town halls taking place along the way.
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He was not worried about his ability to complete it, as he hikes in Big Bend National Park every year and the route was comparatively flat.
"But halfway through the walk I started to feel fatigued and nauseous. [I] actually threw up a couple times along the walk," he said.
"Somehow I finished it. I went home. I figured I was dehydrated and I just needed a good night's sleep," he said. Instead, he did not wake for a full 36 hours, so his family took him to the emergency room, where nurses tested his blood sugar.
After fasting, a normal blood sugar reading would be under 100 mg/dL. Talarico's was 900 mg/dL. "I was in a state of diabetic ketoacidosis, which leads to coma and death without insulin," he said. "I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes on the spot."
What causes diabetic ketoacidosis?
Diabetic ketoacidosis, or DKA, can be life-threatening and is often the first sign that someone has diabetes. It develops when the body is not getting the glucose it needs, forcing it to burn fat instead and flooding the system with acidic chemicals called ketones.
Too many ketones turn the blood acidic, which causes vomiting and abdominal pain. If acidity levels keep rising, DKA can cause falling blood pressure, coma and death, and the whole process can happen in a few hours.
Symptoms can include more frequent urination, extreme thirst, a dry mouth and cool skin, as well as the nausea and vomiting Talarico described.
Is there a cure for diabetes?
Diabetes is a disease in which the body does not make enough insulin or cannot use it properly, causing sugar to build up in the bloodstream instead of entering cells to be used for energy.
Over time, that high blood sugar can damage blood vessels and nerves, leading to complications such as heart disease, kidney disease, vision loss and nerve damage.
Type 1 typically starts in childhood and, until the last decade, was referred to as juvenile-onset diabetes, though the exact causes are unknown.
While there is no cure, it is considered a chronic, manageable condition, with people tracking their blood sugar and using medication, insulin therapy, diet and exercise to regulate it.
Thomas Bamford
