From: vrs0@bunny.gte.com (V. Stern)
Newsgroups: misc.kids
Subject: Re: Info needed: Juvenile Diabetes
Date: 29 Jul 92 13:52:11 GMT
Organization: GTEL

In article <1992Jul27.124310.5557@lmpsbbs.comm.mot.com> gordonb@mot.com 
(Gordon Berkley) writes:
> Help!  We just received a call from my sister-in-law telling us that
> our 6 year-old niece has juvenile diabetes.  I know that this topic was
> heavily discussed in the past, but - as is always the case - at the time
> I was not interrested.
> 
> Could anyone who has *real* info in the topic please forward it to me?
> My wife is going nuts and *NEEDS* reliable data.
> 
> What exactly is it?  What are the long term affects?  Etc Etc Etc
> 
> Thanx in advance.
> -- 
> [  Gordon D. Berkley    INTERNET: gordonb@mcil.comm.mot.com   POST: 
cgb001   ]
> [  PHONE: +972 (3) 565-8727      FAX: +972 (3) 565-8754      (UTC-2)     
    ]

My husband has Type I (insulin dependent) diabetes (also called juvenile 
diabetes, but he developed it at age 27).  Diabetes is when the body stops 
making insulin and, therefore, cannot process sugars effectively.  The 
blood can only carry so much sugar and then the excess spills over into 
the urine.  Untreated diabetes can lead to kidney failure, blindness and a 
whole host of other ailments up to and including coma and death.  The good 
news is, with insulin injections, the diabetes can be controlled so that 
the person can lead a normal life.

Insulin is secreted by the islet cells in the pancreas.  No one is exactly 
sure, but it appears that they are somehow destroyed by the body's own 
immune system - it mistakes the islet cells for foreign bodies and 
destroys them.  It appears to be an autoimmune disease.  No one is sure 
why this happens.  There are a number of promising experiments taking 
place now on how to replace the islet cells in people with diabetes so 
that they no longer have to take insulin.

As I understand, control of diabetes in a child is more difficult because 
1) the child has all kinds of hormones racing around inside controlling 
various growth processes, etc., and this makes the blood sugar regulation 
more difficult and 2) it's really difficult to make most kids understand 
why they can't stuff their faces with all the junk foods their friends are 
eating.

Some people still measure their sugar by using strips which are dipped in 
the person's urine, but (I think) most people now use glucometers to test 
blood sugar.  This does involve finger pricks - often several times a day 
because the blood sugar level changes throughout the day.  This is usually 
accompanied by several insulin injections a day to maintain control of the 
blood sugar.  A "normal" person's blood sugar is around 80-100.  I am not 
sure what the target for a diabetic is because my husband is participating 
in a special study that wants him to keep his sugars as close to "normal" 
as possible.

Long term effects can range from virtually nothing to blindess, nerve 
damage, and other serious health problems.  Again, no one is sure why some 
people develop terrible problems and others do not.  The hypothesis of the 
study my husband is in is that tight control of the blood sugars leads to 
fewer health problems down the road.  The study is not complete, it 
probably will be in a couple more years, but for now it seems to support 
the hypothesis.

Hopefully, your niece is being followed by a good pediatric 
endocrinologist.  If not, please make sure she is.  Family practitioners 
and the like are well-meaning, but it has been our experience that they do 
not always really understand the intricacies (sp?) of diabetes and, 
therefore, may not prescribe the most effective treatment.

Unfortunately, diabetes is currently not curable, but most certainly is 
treatable and controllable.  I am sure that your sister-in-law has many 
difficult days ahead of her, and the whole family may have to readjust its 
eating habits, but everything will work out.

From your address, it looks like you are not in the U.S.  I don't know 
where you or your sister-in-law are.  In the U.S., the American Diabetes 
Association is an excellent source of information.  They also publish a 
magazine called Diabetes Forecast, which is excellent and covers all types 
of diabetes, current research findings, recipes, lifestyles, etc.  There 
is also a list in each issue of people looking for penpals and I've 
noticed a lot of parents of small children with diabetes looking for 
people to correspond with.

I hope this helps.  Remember, this is based on my own experience and 
knowledge.  I am not a doctor!!



Vanessa R. Stern
vrs0@bunny.gte.com