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Juvenile Diabetes
Tackling the Diagnosis as a Family
By Renee Roberson
When Vivian Schaffer's son, Daniel, was 6 years old, he began suffering from chronic fatigue, had dark circles under his eyes, lost several pounds, had an unquenchable thirst and began making multiple trips to the bathroom both day and night. A trip to the doctor pinpointed his blood glucose level at 1,200, when it should typically be in the 100 range. He was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes and his family's world turned upside down.
Type 1 diabetes, also known as juvenile diabetes, is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks and kills the cells in the pancreas, where insulin is made. Because insulin is a hormone needed to convert sugar (glucose), starches and other food into energy needed for daily activity, people diagnosed with this form of diabetes must take injections to replace the insulin they no longer make, Schaffer says.
Schaffer, who is from Cookeville, Tenn., says that following her son's diagnosis, she, her husband and two daughters went through a week of intense training on everything from giving insulin shots, dietary needs, how diabetes affects the body and how to figure up proper insulin doses. They were assigned a diabetes team that included a pediatric endocrinologist, a registered nurse, a dietician and a social worker to help the family cope with Daniel's diabetes diagnosis.
"Juvenile diabetes affects about 5 to 10 percent of the population," says Jenna Scarsi, a certified diabetes educator, dietician and the 2006 winner of Bayer Dream Fund, the company's annual contest for people with diabetes who want to achieve a special dream that may have not been possible if they didn't have their illness under control. With the $100,000 she received, Scarsi took "Lights, Camera, Cure," an interactive diabetes health fair that includes a private screening of a family movie, on the road to five major cities over the course of a year.
