New Changes

Streisand, Randi, and Maureen Monaghan. “Young children with type 1 diabetes: challenges, research, and future directions.” Current diabetes reports vol. 14,9 (2014): 520. doi:10.1007/s11892-014-0520-2

Type 1 Diabetes is a hard diagnosis to deal with, especially at a young age. However, it might be even more conflicting with having to deal with children at a young age with this diagnosis. Management in younger children falls mostly on the parents or their guardians that also have a difficult time  adjusting to the change that needs to take place in their lives. Not only does the body have a physical change with the pancreas not working, but so do the lifestyles of the parents and the child. The child should learn and understand what foods are good for them and what foods are not. The child and parent should also have to make a schedule plan for the proper times that they should take the doses of insulin led by the endocrinologist. Having a set routine causes less fluctuations in the blood sugar which could lead to better nerve health for the child.

According to research by Randi Streisand and Maureen Monaghan, workers in the  Translational Science Children's National Medical Center, shows that about 36% of the younger children that are under 6, don't have great A1C as they don’t meet the minimum of the regulations set my the American Diabetes Association (ADA). This could be due to various reasons, like the child’s sensitivity to insulin early in their diagnosis. This also means children are having a harder time staying consistent and actually maintaining their blood sugars at a young age. Also having Type 1 Diabetes can lead to a decrease in mental health for kids that are diagnosed during their school years. This could be because of their feeling of indifference to other students and having to make a drastic change into their routine to accommodate their needs like syringes and talking to nurses. 

These problems can be solved with more self awareness and the true understanding of their condition. Not only should the parents learn about the child’s condition, but the child themself. This is why I want to make either an app or an animated youtube channel to help educate young type 1 diabetic on their condition. Though this will be an educational channel, it will also grant a level of fun and entertainment for the child so that they have fun learning about themselves. This could lower the negative thoughts about themselves being different from other kids and have ideas of themselves to be superheroes or maybe superior in learning about their own body. I would like to present either the app or youtube channel to doctors to talk to their patients about looking at. I would mostly talk about how to create a routine set and talk about how to count carbs and to take insulin. I would also talk about the consequences of not checking their blood sugar and taking insulin. There would be more things to talk about later on, but I wanted to start small because it’s a channel for new diabetics, so I wouldn’t want them to feel overwhelmed.