World Diabetes Day: Diabetes in Children

On World Diabetes Day, what is diabetes in children? What are its causes, symptoms, and treatment?

What is diabetes in children?

Diabetes mellitus in children is divided into two parts. Type I is when the child’s body stops producing the hormone insulin, which is an important hormone in the human body that helps use glucose for energy.

The second type is when insulin is secreted in the body but in an insufficient amount or when the body does not respond to insulin normally due to high insulin resistance.

Insulin enters the sugar in the blood into the cells. Where glucose forms the energy resulting from the human eating of food. It is excreted in the blood. the body cells take it as fuel to generate energy for all the body organs. Insulin is a transporter of glucose from the bloodstream to the cells.

November 14

The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies diabetes as a global epidemic that affects 340 million people worldwide.

November 14, is World Diabetes Awareness Day. It commemorates the birth of (Frederick Banting), who discovered the treatment of insulin in 1922, which controls the level of sugar in the blood.

How does diabetes in children affect their lives?

Complications from type 1 diabetes come in many forms, and they affect the work of the main organs in the body, and we mention:

-Diabetes affects the work of the heart and can lead to high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke.

-Excess sugar in the body causes injury to the walls of small blood vessels that feed the nerves of the eye and kidneys, which damages them.

-The high level of sugar in the body can affect the bones by reducing their density and thus lead to osteoporosis.

*These complications take a long time to appear in children and usually appear at puberty. In any case, paying attention to the blood sugar level in children’s bodies and checking it periodically is very important for detection and treatment.

What are the symptoms of diabetes in children?

In fact, the cause of diabetes in children is not often known, but there are several causes, including:

-Lack of exercise, laziness, and lack of movement, can affect the efficiency of cells that secrete insulin.

-Eating foods that are easy to absorb, such as carbohydrates. These foods turn into fats stored in the body, which increases the burden on the pancreas, which secretes insulin, causing diabetes.

– Some diseases that the child suffers from cause the weakening of his immune system and consequently a weakness in the secretion of insulin.

Genetic causes and some viral infections.

 

Treatment and prevention

Accordingly, you should paid attention to your child’s diet, especially diabetics, in terms of organizing food dates and knowing the quantity. In addition, to calculate the number of carbohydrates and knowing food alternatives.

Diabetes will not affect your child’s life. Definitely, you must take good care of the appropriate treatment prescribed by your doctor. Diabetes can be treated with insulin, and it may be needles or pumps, depending on the child’s medical condition. This treatment is for life.

Child Health Program

Resources:

Almayadin

Altibbi

Mayo Clinic