Juvenile diabetes can kill your child. There is no question about it. And there’s also no question about the fact that it will reduce their lifespan by an average of 5-8 years.
The stark facts about Juvenile diabetes are in –each year 13,000 kids are diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.
For the last 7 years, the community of Howard Beach has been participating in the Walk for a Cure, organized and sponsored by the International Society of SS Cosma and Damiano, which is held solely for the benefit of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).
This week The Forum introduces you to some things about this disease you might not know. We will continue our awareness campaign in support of this cause by bringing you all the facts about this condition which affects so many children every year up until the Walk for a Cure on May 18th.
JDRF has made great strides in advancing the path toward a cure for the disease and the “Walk for a Cure” brings thousands of children closer to the possibility of one day being healthy. “We are very thankful for the support of everyone who has come out for the last six years,” says Society President Joe DeCandia, “this year we are hoping that even more people will realize how badly these kids need our help and come out and walk with us.”
Type 1 diabetes has many indicators but the one most relied upon to let you know exactly what state a patient is, is through the monitoring of blood glucose levels. In Type 1 diabetes insulin is not produced by the pancreas. It is insulin that is used by our bodies to break down our blood sugar (glucose) and then move it into our cells where it is stored and later used for energy.
One of the keys to lowering a spiked blood sugar is a constant hydration, preferably with an electrolyte enhanced water.
Without insulin that same glucose builds up in the bloodstream and brings about the life-threatening symptom logy of Type 1 Diabetes. The constant monitoring of blood sugar is essential and while that is a crucial observation, patients must also be monitored for other key indicators, which if left unchecked can lead to damage to major organs including the heart, kidneys and also the eyes.
There must also be an entire set of preventative measures on board to keep the risks for the development of heart disease in check. These patients must be on top of blood pressure, cholesterol as well.
DeCandia himself joins the long list of parents that knows the true circumstances surrounding a child with Type 1 diabetes. He and wife Doreen’s 13-year-old son Jacob was diagnosed with the disease when he was 9 years old.
“Yes your child can live a normal life with this disease,” says Doreen DeCandia. “That is providing you adjust your definition of normal.” And in following her description, the degree of adjustment clearly brings with hit the ability to shift an entire family dynamic, warping routine tasks to the point where they become taxing at best.
“We are up all through the night,” DeCandia says matter of factly. It’s clear that the sleep patterns in this home, where three other children, Jacobs’s brother Joseph and sisters Juliet and Jillian, ranging in ages from 2-5 also reside.
Jacob’s sugar levels must be checked every two hours to make sure they haven’t risen. They can be high or low, and the episode to follow depends on the numbers.
Doreen DeCandia’s cell phone is set to go off every two hours during the night. She tries to stick Jacob’s toe with the little pricking device that will collect a drop of blood to measure—sometimes he doesn’t feel it and stays asleep. “Sometimes that works and sometimes it doesn’t.” On the nights that blood sugar has risen, there is a mad rush to hydrate with massive amounts of water. Hyperglycemic episodes are accompanied by mood swings, agitation, fatigue and an altered mental status. The reverse end of the spectrum, hypo glycemia, brings about yet another type of sleepless night. On these nights it’s sitting up in the bed, too weak to move, and gulping down apple juice—or anything with enough sugar to bring the number up. In the scheme of things 40 is the most feared number because it’s the benchmark of possibility of lapsing into diabetic coma. “We came dangerously close last year and my breath stopped,” she explained. Jacob had passed out at school and was very close to that point; luckily she arrived, was alerted by his friends outside and was able to reach him and start bringing his sugar back up.
“That’s one of the greatest problems we face outside of the physical threats of this disease,” says Linda Gurino. She too is a critical part of the Howard Beach effort. Her son Vincent was diagnosed several years ago. “The lack of awareness is a danger to our kids. If people knew to look for these symptoms and how to react to them their lives might not be so at risk every day.” But Gurino says people have no idea about the severity of this disease and their lack of knowledge can introduce great danger.
The dangers Gurino speaks of can come on a number of fronts with Type 1. Children with Type 1 Diabetes face a laundry list of dangers including heart disease and stroke, kidney disease, nerve function, serious complications with their eyes, foot ulcers, amputations and infections.
One of the great challenges faced by anyone combating this disease is the control of blood glucose levels. Nutrition is a crucial component in this fight along with the proper administration of insulin. For some families there are many social components that enter the picture. The disease requires a tremendous investment of time in order to make sure everything is managed correctly. And physical complications have mental counterparts in this disease as well. Depression rates among adolescent patients are high in kids with Type 1. There is prevalence for eating disorders as well, especially in young women because lower insulin use results in weight loss.
A MESSAGE FROM THE PUBLISHER:
Clearly our need to understand the severity of this disease has gone under served. We hope that you will follow the information on this disease over the next few weeks here in The Forum.
We also hope that this information will show you how your help can bring about a change for these kids. This is a disease that we can see wiped out in their lifetimes. Although it is not in the medical spotlight as much as other diseases, the tremendous sector of the population affected by it both needs and deserves our help in bringing them to their goal of a cure.
Please join us in the fight against Juvenile Diabetes and show your support by registering in the Walk-for-a Cure. You can do so online at: www.JDRF.org/Howardbeach. Registration begins on site Saturday May 18 at 9 a.m. at the Ave Maria Catholic Academy located at 158-20 101st Street.
