World Diabetes Day

Sunday, November 14th is World Diabetes Day (http://www.worlddiabetesday.org/).

What can you do to recognize this special day?

You can start by wearing blue. You can also tell your co-workers, friends, family and even strangers about World Diabetes Day and how an estimated 285 million people worldwide are affected by Diabetes, 5 to 10% of which is Type 1 Diabetes. You can tell them that every day, 200 children develop Type 1 Diabetes. You can tell them that children who develop Type 1 Diabetes did not do anything to cause it. You can tell them that without insulin that those children would die. You can tell them that Type 1 Diabetes cannot be reversed, outgrown or controlled by diet alone. You can tell them that Type 1 Diabetes is increasing in children at a rate of 3% each year and 5% each year in pre-school children. You can tell them that their children could be diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes even if there is no family history. You can tell them that insulin is not a cure. You can tell them that even if Type 1 diabetics do everything right that they are in no way guaranteed to not get complications. You can tell them that the greatest fear for the parents of a Type 1 is for their children to not wake up in the morning (http://diabetesnewshound.com/type1/dead-in-bed/). You can tell them that most Type 1s look healthy on the outside, even if they’re not on the inside. You can tell them that we really, really need a cure.

All things equal, I can’t stop thinking how simple our life would be if Type 1 Diabetes went away tomorrow. To be able to eat whatever whenever and not have to think about it would be so liberating. To be able to turn off that never-ending process running in the back of my mind that is constantly calculating carbs, estimating insulin peaks and analyzing Adele’s current and future insulin – sugar balance would be such a huge weight off our shoulders. To be able to finally put an end to that continuous doubt and uneasiness associated with determining insulin dosages would be unbelievable. I cannot think of anything that I would want more that would positively affect our life as much.

If your life is not affected by Type 1 Diabetes, please appreciate this on November 14th and make a commitment to do your part, it doesn’t need to be much, but please do something to help raise awareness and accelerate the Type 1 Diabetes cure.