PATIENTS diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes before the age of 10 could be 30 times more likely to suffer heart problems in later life, a Glasgow study found.

Life expectancy for individuals with younger onset disease is on average 16 years shorter than people without diabetes, and 10 years shorter than those diagnosed at an older age.

Researchers also found that patients with younger-onset type 1 diabetes are four times as likely to die from any cause.

Study co-author Professor Naveed Sattar, of the University of Glasgow, said: “While the absolute risk levels are higher in individuals who develop diabetes when older, simply due to age being a strong risk factor, the excess risk compared to healthy controls is much higher in those who developed diabetes when younger.

“This is something we did not fully appreciate before.”