Diabetesolutions.org

Childhood is the most beautiful and careless age of whoever’s life but could it be disturbed by external factors? Nowadays’ living shows that there are several reasons of feeling unhappy and unprotected even for children. One of the most dangerous illnesses at which children are exposed to is juvenile diabetes.

You may wonder: ‘So, what should we do for our children to make their existence easier in spite of their illness?’

Firstly, we suggest you not to terrify your children by reminding them all the time that they are ill. It just doesn’t help at anything! Of course that you must take care of him or her, but don’t exaggerate! Even though they are ill, children can undertake physical actions adequate to their age, like volleyball, handball, basketball, football, tennis, cycling, jogging and dancing. These exercises will not only improve their physical conditions and entertain them, but will also help them psychically. Physical effort is part of the juvenile diabetes’ therapy, after the diet and insulin treatment. These exercises should be regularly and progressive practiced, thinking about their duration and force, but they must have a doctor’s supervision. However, sports like swimming, climbing, diving and even lonely sailing should be avoided, because they have a great risk of hypoglycemia.

Furthermore, sweets should be considerably reduced from their alimentation and fruits and vegetables can replace them. A special diet is, however in almost all cases, the best solution for somebody who suffers from juvenile diabetes. This diet could contain: dried fruits, integral bread, pasta, maize meal and oatmeal, rice, certain fruits and vitamins A and E.

Insulin injections must have a well specified place in a children suffering from juvenile diabetes life. The amount of insulin should be diminished and the ratio of glucoses could be limited only to physical activities practice. But exercises have a very important role and they are an essential help for a specific diet if constantly practiced.

What can we tell you about their education and future plans concerning their professional orientation? Well, they can have a normal life when attending classes with the main condition of being supported by his or her classmates and teachers. On the other hand, the professions involving work in a high temperature, loud noise, permanent nervous straining should be avoided.

All in all, even if they suffer from juvenile diabetes, children should be supported to have a normal existence. Eventually, childhood could be the most charming age for everyone!

What is diabetes?

Diabetes occurs when the sugar level in your blood is higher than a normal value. Excessive sugar in blood is harmful for health. Sugar in your blood comes from digestion. In order to get to the cells where it is used as fuel, glucose needs insulin, a hormone produced by the pancreas. Diabetes occurs because of insufficient insulin from the pancreas or because of cellular lack of sensibility to insulin. In both cases glucose level in blood exceeds normal values.

Diabetes signs and symptoms:

• Excessive thirst
• Frequent urinating
• Hunger or exaggerated tiredness
• Weight loss without a reason
• Slow recovery of wounds
• Dry skin, with itching sensation
• Loss of sensibility at the feet level
• Sight problems

There are more types of diabetes, but two of them are more popular:

1. Diabetes, type I, juvenile or which is dependent on insulin, and which occurs in the case of children or young people. It is considered an auto immune disease, in which the immune system attacks cells which produce insulin from the pancreas and it can’t produce enough insulin any more. These patients often need insulin for the rest of their lives.

2. Diabetes, type II, which is a disease specific to adults and which does not mean treatment with insulin. It usually occurs in the case of people older than 40 and it is the most popular type (90-95% of the total). In the case of these people, the pancreas produces insulin, but the organism can’t use it efficiently. The result is glucose accumulation in the blood. Type II diabetes occurs in 80% of the situations in the case of overweight people. Recent data have established that it means cells resistance to insulin action provoked by excessive consumption of animal fats.

The best solution in the case of the second type of diabetes is a diet recommended by your doctor.

Diabetes during pregnancy is also called gestational diabetes which sometimes develops late in pregnancy. Insulin is a hormone that enables the body to break down sugar to be used as energy. Without sufficient insulin the amount of sugar in the blood rises.  This form of diabetes usually disappears after the birth of the baby, but women who have had gestational diabetes stand a 20 to 50 percent chance of developing type II diabetes. Pregnancy hormones or a shortage of insulin causes gestational diabetes and may not show any symptoms.

Glucose levels in pregnant women can diagnose gestational diabetes as glucose levels are lower during pregnancy. Blood glucose levels are measured before a woman drinks a beverage containing glucose. After that levels are checked 1, 2, and 3 hours. A woman has gestational diabetes if two blood glucose levels meet or exceed certain number.

The cause of gestational diabetes can be the hormones produced during pregnancy that block the action of insulin. The mother’s body then cannot produce enough extra insulin to counteract this blocking effect.

Women are more at risk if they:

• they have a history of type II diabetes
• are over the age of 35
• are obese
• have previously given birth to a large baby
• have previously given birth to an abnormal baby
• have previously had a stillbirth late in pregnancy

The effect of gestational diabetes on the fetus during pregnancy is that high blood sugar can cause the baby to grow larger, which can lead to difficult delivery and injuries to both mother and baby during birth.

Treatment involves regular testing of blood sugar, a planned diet and sufficient exercise.

Most of the people consider that the food they eat changes into energy and that’s all. They ignore the fact that the organism works for them, it digests food and converts carbohydrates in a kind of sugar called glucose, which enters the blood circuit. Furthermore, the pancreas produces insulin, a hormone which travels through the organism, connected to receptors at the surface of the cells. Once attached to the receptors, insulin acts like a key which opens the cell, so that glucose enters the cell and it is used as a source of energy. If the body does not need glucose for energy, it is deposited as fat tissue.

This process is interrupted by diabetes. Millions of people are diagnosed with diabetes, and doctors think that there are other millions of cases which are not diagnosed.

There are two types of diabetes. The first type is based on dependence on insulin, as the pancreas is not able anymore to produce it. Patients need daily injections with insulin.

The second type of diabetes is not based on dependence on insulin, and it may be caused by obesity or sedentary life.

In order to manage diabetes, you should take into account the following aspects.

Firstly, if you are overweight, or in your family there are members who suffer from this disease, or if during pregnancy sugar level in your blood was high, you should have check it on a regular basis.

Secondly, you must be careful not to consume too much sugar or fat foods, or food which is too rich in animal proteins: meat or cheese.

To continue, you should reduce salt consumption, but you should eat more fibers, contained by integral cereals, beans or vegetables.

As far as alcohol is concerned, it should be consumed moderately. Your disease should be a family project, so that you don’t feel frustrated because of your diet. They should eat the same food as a diabetic person, and you need a nutritional plan.

Diabetes can be easily controlled if you drink a lot of water, if you try to reduce stress, and if you keep monitoring any change in your organism since you discovered this disease.