He remembers how hard it was to control his blood sugar during his early teen years, especially his first year in high school. She has had diabetes since age 7. Her blood sugar levels normally average 115 to 140 but have recently climbed to as high as 298. Experts say the wild blood glucose swings common among teens with diabetes are caused in part from wild swings in hormone production.
Hormones are chemicals produced by one part of the body that cause things to happen in other parts.
Growth hormone, for instance, is a substance produced in the brain that causes changes in the bones, skin and other organs. For teens with diabetes, swings in hormone production mean that you need to work harder with diabetes to keep your blood glucose levels under control. As you become an adult, it will get easier because your hormone production will level out. During the teen years, the body produces large quantities of several hormones, such as estrogen and progesterone in females, testosterone in males and growth hormone in both. Of all the hormones produced, researchers say, growth hormone seems to affect blood glucose levels most of all.