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Finding A Cure: Diabetes Awareness Month
Finding A carbs. For instance, if I eat a plate of spaghetti, I count the carbs and take the insulin I need for those carbs. That is what will break down the sugar in those carbs.” Insulin is the difference between life or death for people living with diabetes, yet insulin prices are still skyrocketing. Because of this, Kathy hopes that with more awareness, more research will be done to find a cure. “With two diabetics, I have to spend thousands of dollars on diabetic supplies in some months,” Kathy said. CURE Diabetes Awareness Month
by Brooke Ezzo | photo courtesy of Kathy Duke
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November is Diabetes Awareness Month, a time when the diabetic community can come together to show the world what this epidemic is really like. Diabetes is a chronic disease that occurs either when the pancreas does not produce enough insulin or when the body cannot effectively use the insulin it produces.
There are several types of diabetes, most commonly we hear of Type 1 and Type 2. Type 1 diabetes is thought to be caused by an autoimmune reaction that stops your body from making insulin. With Type 2 diabetes, your body doesn’t use insulin well, resulting in abnormal blood sugar levels.
Test strips, finger pricks, glucose monitors, midnight blood sugar checks, and thousands of dollars worth of insulin are just glimpses into a day in the life of a diabetic. This is something Flower Mound resident Kathy Duke and her son, Danny, know all too well.
“I was sick for a couple of years and didn’t working, so we take insulin and count
realize it,” Kathy said. “I was diagnosed at 21 with Type 1 diabetes, and my son was diagnosed at 14 months old.”
Genes definitely play a role in Type 1, but researchers believe it is a mix of nature and nurture; your environment, the foods you eat, and daily routines. People
living with diabetes are encouraged to live healthy lifestyles: maintain healthy weights, stay active, and manage blood sugar levels with food.
“You have to check your levels every day, at least five to 10 times a day,” Kathy said. “With Type 1, the pancreas stops
The research community is making headway in beta cell replacement and regeneration – understanding why the body turns on itself destroying the cells that create insulin, immune therapy, and the development of an artificial pancreas.
“What a diabetic would specifically want are things that would make our life easier. Every day you have to have your insulin and your supplies,” Kathy said. “You can’t just run out the door with your cell phone and nothing else. You are always planning ahead.”
Kathy added, “For me it’s about awareness. Insulin is not a cure, and we need to find a cure.”
For more information on diabetes research and ways to get involved, visit www.jdrf.org and www.diabetes.org.
