26-year-old died overnight, once he tried to ‘outsmart’ his ‘slow killer’ disease, doctor reveals one habit which killed him: ‘He started taking oral…’

Unchecked diabetes isn’t just a chronic illness, it is a ticking time bomb which can go off at anytime and claim a life if left untreated. High blood sugar levels can lead to people dying before their time. Taking to X, internal medicine expert Dr Priyam Bordoloi warned his followers the dangers of ignoring a prediabetes or a diabetes diagnosis. Instead of treating it as a lifelong condition, it should be considered as a slow poison which should be kept in check.

He shared an anecdote of a 26-year-old man who died from unchecked high blood sugar. Diabetes is widely regarded as a long-term illness that gradually harms the body over many years. Most people associate it with complications that slowly affect vital organs such as the eyes, kidneys, nerves, and heart if blood sugar levels remain uncontrolled. Because its damage usually develops over time, many believe the condition rarely becomes life-threatening in a matter of hours. He explained how a man’s attempt to outsmart his diagnosis killed him overnight.

Dr Bordoloi wrote how the youth, who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in his youth, chose to avoid injections and took to oral medication to keep blood sugar levels in check. “It was a deadly mistake,” he wrote.


The patient was later admitted to the hospital in a critical state. He was unconscious, breathing in deep, laboured gasps, while a strong fruity odour filled the air. Blood tests revealed glucose levels exceeding 600 mg/dL. Sadly, although the patient had experienced similar medical emergencies before, this episode proved far more severe because treatment was sought far too late.

Dr. Bordoloi stressed that Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes are fundamentally different disorders and should never be confused. While many medications prescribed for Type 2 diabetes either encourage the pancreas to release more insulin or help the body respond better to the insulin it already produces, these medicines cannot treat Type 1 diabetes effectively.

In people with Type 1 diabetes, the immune system destroys the insulin-producing cells of the pancreas, leaving the body unable to make any insulin at all. Because of this complete deficiency, tablets cannot replace the hormone that is essential for survival. Only externally administered insulin can perform that life-sustaining function.

Without insulin, glucose remains trapped in the bloodstream instead of entering the body's cells, where it is needed for energy. As a result, the body mistakenly believes it is starving despite extremely high blood sugar levels. To compensate, it rapidly breaks down stored fat for fuel. This emergency process releases ketones, acidic compounds that accumulate in the blood and become highly dangerous when produced in excess.

The excessive buildup of ketones leads to diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a medical emergency that disrupts the body's acid-base balance. The condition causes severe dehydration, dangerous electrolyte disturbances—particularly involving potassium—and can eventually trigger swelling of the brain. Even with intensive intravenous treatment and advanced emergency care, the patient's condition continued to deteriorate until his body could no longer recover.

Dr. Bordoloi also highlighted the major warning signs of diabetic ketoacidosis. These include overwhelming thirst that cannot be satisfied, frequent urination, persistent vomiting, intense abdominal pain, breath with a fruity smell, deep and laboured breathing, and marked confusion or altered mental status.

He concluded with a crucial reminder that for people living with Type 1 diabetes, insulin is not simply another medication—it is an essential treatment required to stay alive. Insulin injections cannot be replaced by oral medicines, herbal products, natural remedies, or dietary changes, as none of these alternatives can perform the vital role of insulin in the body.