Screening for type 1 diabetes is now easier than ever before. Although screening has been available for many years, now anyone can get screened for T1D from the comfort of their own home with JDRF’s new T1Detect.

Knowing if a person is at-risk for developing T1D can be lifesaving. Approximately 40-60% of people in the United States present with diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) at their T1D diagnosis, a complication that can be life-threatening. When a person knows they have the potential to develop T1D, they and their family members can recognize any symptoms before DKA occurs.

Now, thanks to recent advancements in the T1D prevention space, people who find that they have autoantibodies for T1D can participate in clinical trials for groundbreaking treatments that work to delay the onset of T1D, and someday aim to prevent T1D altogether.

Ginger Vieira, T1D for more than 21 years and mom to Lucy and Violet, tells us, “I worried about my children developing type 1 diabetes before I was even pregnant with them. This ability to test autoantibodies so easily is something I think any parent or family with T1D or other autoimmune diseases should do.”

Ginger shows just how easy it is to use the T1Detect kit in her recent YouTube video where she screens her daughters for autoantibodies.

“Thanks to several decades of type 1 diabetes research, it’s been determined that most people develop autoantibodies before the age of 5, even if the full onset and symptoms of the disease don’t occur until 10, 15 or 30 years old.

Autoantibodies are the result of your immune system attacking your own body. Both of my children had zero autoantibodies at age 3 using TrialNet.org’s risk-screening test. With JDRF’s new T1Detect test kit, I’m testing them again as they each approach/pass 5 years old.

Why is it worth it? Watch the end of the video to learn about what you can do if your child does test positive for autoantibodies related to type 1 diabetes.”