Two resent studies identified new genetic variants that influence the risk of obesity and insulin resistance. People who are insulin resistant and obese are at risk for developing type 2 diabetes. The study in the UK looked at data from nearly 17,000 people of European descent. The research team led by Dr. Ruth J. F. Loos, from Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge confirmed prior research linking variants in the FTO gene with obesity. They also found genetic variants near the MC4R gene were strongly associated... more

Which infants have the highest risk of developing diabetes as they mature? Asians, Native Hawaiians, blacks, Hispanics, and other Pacific Islanders, have significantly higher risks of developing diabetes than whites do. Non-Hispanic whites have nearly an 8.7 percent chance of developing diabetes, while non-Hispanic blacks have a 13.3 percent chance. When you group all of the Hispanic/Latino population together they have... more

It is difficult for anyone to handle Diabetes alone, especially a child. When first diagnosed it is really scary, especially if the diagnosis occurred because of a sugar crisis, hospitalization, or coma. Unfortunately, crisis is the most common way that children are diagnosed. Chances are the child’s parents are freaking out about making the life and death decisions regarding maintaining sugar levels, and the child probably is too. Whether real or imagined a child with diabetes feels different from peers. During school hours, the diabetic child needs to check sugar levels,... more

If your child has diabetes then his or her blood sugar levels are too high. High blood sugar can damage nerves or blood vessels over time. That nerve damage can result in burning pain or cause your child to lose sensitivity in body parts such as the feet. Because of lost sensitivity, your child may not feel a cut, blister, or sore. Ulcers and infections can result from these untreated foot injuries. Your child’s feet may eventually not get enough blood or oxygen due to... more

Are you adopting a child that requires daily shots? The thought of giving your new child a shot everyday can be a little intimidating if you don’t have any experience giving injections. It is important for you to become confident in giving the shots for the health of the child you are adopting.

You may want to familiarize yourself with the feel of giving shots by practicing. You can fill your syringe with water and practice injecting the water into an orange or a grapefruit. Try to press the needle quickly through the skin and practice injecting the... more

Julia – “Thank you for taking the time to speak with me about diabetes Jared. Which type of diabetes do you have Jared, is it type 1 or type 2?”

Jared – “I have type 1 diabetes.“

Julia – “Jared, I have noticed that you are very active in sports and you are really in good shape. Have you encountered very many people who think just overweight kids get diabetes or that eating too many sweets causes diabetes?”

Jared – “That is true with type 2 diabetes, not with the type 1 that I have.”

Research indicates that Type 1 diabetes is the... more

Diabetes rates are on the increase among American youth. Type 2 diabetes that used to be seen primarily among adults over 45 is now more common in children. One out of every 523 people younger than 20 years old has diabetes. The World Diabetes Day campaign theme for 2007 was "Diabetes in Children and Adolescents," which was intended to raise awareness about the increasing prevalence of type 1 and type 2 diabetes among youth around the world. Educational materials were released in November to coincide with National... more

The American Diabetes Association and the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases funded additional research on trying to get one type of pancreas cells to transform into islet insulin-producing cells. For the past decade the object of diabetes research... more

If you have a child with diabetes I’m sure you’ve dreamed of a day when a cure would be available. Like those nights when you couldn’t sleep because your child’s glucose level dropped to 40 and scared you to death. Or the time he called from school to say it was 300 and you dropped what you were doing to race there and help. It seems like you might place your future hope for a cure in Stem Cell therapy as it is apparently already being used successfully in curing Type 2 diabetes.

Children with Juvenile type 1 diabetes have... more

1. You can request a 504 plan at school to allow your child to meet his/her needs. You can ask that your child be allowed to leave class to use a bathroom at any time and may even be given access to staff only areas. You can ask for my child to have extra time before lunch to administer insulin. You can ask teachers and office to keep emergency snack foods available at all times for your child and that your child can eat during class. You can ask for a retake on test if your child’s sugar was too high. You can request that... more