Juvenile Diabetes – Talking About Type 1 Diabetics

Being diagnosed with diabetes is never easy and for a child the fear and emotions involved can be magnified as they try and understand and cope with what this disease is all about.

You Are Not Alone!

These four words are very important for parents or a child to hear as they face life with type 1 diabetes. It can be daunting finding out how much life change there will be and having a support system will be key. There is a lot of information thrown out that needs to be learned at once to be able to manage diabetes properly and having the right facts and taking things one day at a time will make a big difference. There are organizations that can even help kids find a pen pal that is going through the same experiences!

Back to Basics

Around 5-10% of people with diabetes have type 1 diabetes and most people get diagnosed with it between birth and late 30s. People with this type of diabetes produce little to no insulin and therefore need to inject or pump insulin many times a day to do what their bodies can’t. Several symptoms to be on the look out for with type 1 diabetes are:

• Blurry vision
• Extreme thirst or hunger
• Urinating more than usual
• Losing weight without trying
• Being tired all the time

Moving Forward

Diabetes brings many changes into your life but it doesn’t have to BE your life! As parents and their children learn to manage the disease and take charge of their lives in a different way, follow some simple tips to make things a little easier:

• Learn what foods make up a balanced diabetic diet
• Stay active! Exercise helps keep blood sugar levels under control
• Lean on your doctors and support team for help when things get tough
• Be aware of the complications that can arise and what to do if and when they come.

Drs. Joel Brook, David Northcutt, Irene Arroyo and Nam Tran, foot specialists at Dallas Podiatry Works care about the health of their patients.