Diabetes

Children Coping with Diabetes

Type 2 diabetes has been around for many years and is an extremely dangerous disease among children of the United States. This disease affects the young at an early age and based on the statistics by the (American Diabetes Association, 2010); about 7.8% of the American children have this disease. This disease is the “seventh leading cause of deaths among children” in the United States. (American Diabetes Association, 2010). The disease seems to affect children at an early age. According to the (CDC, 2010) more than 186,000 children younger than 20 has Type 2 diabetes. The question still remains, why does this condition affect the children at a young age? How can this problem be treated? Most importantly, how do we stop the disease from trying to harm future generations? It is frightening how severe this metabolic disease is in children. Diabetes can be extremely difficult to treat, due to the fact their bodies seem to be resistant to insulin and glucose that builds in their bloodstream. (Zeitler, 2012) Management of the problem for children requires some effort by the children and society. For example, doctors, family members, and friends can help children reduce eating fats and sweets in their daily diet by substituting fruits and vegetables. The children must be willing to take the first step to improve the doctor’s or nutritionist’s recommendations for prescribing a good diet, daily or weekly exercises, and medication.

Type 2 diabetes can be brought on by obesity and inactivity in children. Children that have a genetic predisposition tend to develop the disease when they gain weight. (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2011). There are some risk factors associated with Type 2 diabetes in children: being overweight, family history of diabetes, depression, and problems with insulin resistance. Studies have shown that depression may increase a person’s risk for developing Type 2 diabetes....