This is the next in a series of article excerpts by me discussing all forms of diabetes and metabolic syndrome. This article was originally published November 5th, 2007 in the Caller Times and reposted here with permission. 

By now most of us have heard that there are two types of diabetes: type 1 and type 2. By far, the majority of all persons with diabetes (about 85%) have type 2 diabetes. This used to be called adult-onset diabetes or non-insulin dependent diabetes. These latter two terms are outdated and no longer relevant. We now know that kids can get “adult” diabetes even before they become teenagers, plus persons with type 2 diabetes often require insulin injections to survive the longer they have the condition.

But there is another form of diabetes that the public is incredibly unaware of. This type of diabetes is estimated to account for up to 5% of all cases of diabetes. It’s called Maturity Onset Diabetes of Youth, better known as MODY. MODY is a genetic form of diabetes that is passed down from one generation to the next. A mother or father with MODY diabetes will pass it to either a son or daughter. Because it is a dominant genetic condition, this means there will be a direct chain of inheritance up the family tree (grandparent to parent to child). Persons with MODY can be of any weight, even though originally it was described in only thin persons. Our obesity epidemic has made diagnosis of this form of diabetes a lot trickier.
The reason why patients should know if they have MODY is that there is a 50% chance of passing the condition on to their children and grandchildren. That information alone could be invaluable to the future health of the child in regards to earlier diagnosis and treatment which would lower the risk of long term diabetes complications. Once you know whether you have a MODY form of diabetes, the MODY gene tests can be done long before diabetes ever occurs in a child.