Diabetes often begins years before diagnosis.

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Dr. RoseMarie Pasmantier is affiliated with the Department of Medicine at the State University of New York Health Science Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Type I diabetes is a silent disease that often starts many years before the appearance of symptoms.

In the years before the symptoms show up, destructive changes take place in the person who is later diagnosed as having Type I, insulin-dependent diabetes.

During these years the insulin-producing cells within the pancreas of the person are being attacked and destroyed--by the person's own disease fighting system (the immune system).

That's why Type I diabetes is being called an autoimmune disorder.

Because of the silent nature of the development of Type I diabetes, scientists are looking for ways to detect this problem early.

They are also looking for ways to slow or stop the destructive process …