If your child has diabetes, it's important to educate
yourself so you can help manage it. This means arming yourself with
the right information. Although the Internet has a wealth of
content on diabetes, it's not always accurate. Information
that's not interpreted correctly, or is inaccurate or
misleading, can actually be harmful for someone with diabetes. Even
well-meaning family members and friends can give bad
information.
Talk to your
diabetes health care team
when you see information that doesn't seem quite right, sounds
too good to be true, or contradicts what they've told you.
Never make changes to your child's diabetes management plan
without contacting someone on the health care team first.
Myth: Eating too much sugar causes diabetes.
Fact:
Type 1 diabetes
is caused by a destruction of the insulin-producing cells of the
pancreas, which is unrelated to sugar consumption.
Type 2 diabetes
results from the body's inability to respond to insulin
normally. Although the tendency to get type 2 diabetes is
genetically inherited in most cases, eating too much sugar (or
foods with sugar, like candy or regular soda) can cause weight
gain, which can increase the risk for developing the disease.
Myth: Kids with diabetes can never eat sweets.
Fact:
Kids with diabetes can eat a certain amount of sugary food as part
of a balanced diet, but they need to control the total amount of
carbohydrates
they eat, which includes sugary treats. Because sweets provide no
real nutritional value other than calories, they should be limited
- but not necessarily eliminated. All kids (and adults!) should
avoid excessive consumption of foods that provide little
nutritional value and can crowd out healthier foods.
Myth: Kids can outgrow diabetes.
Fact:
Kids do not outgrow diabetes. In type 1 diabetes, the cells of the
pancreas that produce insulin are destroyed. Once they're
destroyed, they will never make insulin again. Kids with type 1
diabetes will always need to take insulin (until a cure is found).
Although kids with type 2 diabetes may see an improvement in their
blood sugar levels after puberty or with lifestyle adjustments,
they will probably always have a tendency toward having high blood
sugar levels, especially if they are physically inactive or gain
too much
weight
.
Myth: Diabetes is contagious.
Fact:
Diabetes is not contagious. You can't catch it from another
person. Although researchers think that getting type 1 diabetes may
be triggered by something in the environment, like a virus, most
people who get type 1 diabetes have inherited genes that make them
more susceptible to the disease.
Myth: High blood sugar levels are normal for some people and
aren't a sign of diabetes.
Fact:
Certain conditions (like illness or stress) and certain medications
(like steroids) temporarily can cause high blood sugar levels in
people without diabetes. But high blood sugar levels are never
normal. People who have higher than normal blood sugar levels or
sugar in their urine should be checked for diabetes by a
doctor.
Myth: People with diabetes can feel whether their blood sugar
levels are high or low.
Fact:
Although someone with diabetes may feel physical symptoms (such as
extreme thirst, weakness, or fatigue) if blood sugar levels are
high or low, the only way to know for sure what the levels are is
to test them. For example, because blood sugar levels have to be
very high to cause symptoms, a person who isn't testing
regularly may be having blood sugar levels high enough to damage
the body without even realizing it.
Myth: All people with diabetes need to take insulin.
Fact:
All people with type 1 diabetes have to take insulin injections
because their pancreases don't make insulin anymore. Some, but
not all, people with type 2 diabetes have to take insulin with or
without pills to manage their blood sugar levels.
Myth: Insulin cures diabetes.
Fact:
Taking insulin helps manage diabetes, but doesn't cure it.
Insulin helps get glucose out of the bloodstream and into the
cells, where it can be used for energy. This helps keep blood sugar
levels under control, but taking insulin doesn't correct the
underlying cause.
Myth: Tablets or pills for diabetes are a form of insulin.
Fact:
Diabetes medicines taken by mouth are not a form of insulin.
Insulin is a protein that would be broken down or destroyed by the
acids and digestive enzymes in the stomach and intestines if
swallowed. Currently there is no other practical way to deliver
insulin except via injections, although researchers are working on
ways to give insulin by mouth, in the nose, or inhaling it into the
lungs. Some people with type 2 diabetes take pills or tablets that
help the body make more insulin or use the insulin it makes more
effectively. But pills for diabetes cannot help kids with type 1
diabetes because they are no longer able to make insulin.
Myth: Having to take more insulin means diabetes is getting
worse.
Fact:
Insulin doses need to be continuously adjusted to help keep blood
sugar levels in a healthy range. Many factors affect blood sugar
levels, including
diet
, exercise, and time of day. In addition, insulin doses may need to
be changed over time. At the time of diagnosis, the pancreas may
still be able to make some insulin, so less injected insulin may be
needed. However, as the pancreas makes less and less insulin, more
insulin needs to be given by injection to keep blood sugar levels
in a healthy range. How fast kids are growing, whether they're
undergoing puberty, how much they eat, and how active they are
affect the amount of insulin needed each day.
Myth: Kids with diabetes don't have to take their insulin
or pills when they're sick.
Fact:
When kids are sick, especially if they are throwing up or not
eating much, giving insulin might not seem like the right thing to
do. However, it is very important to keep taking insulin during
illness. Insulin doses may need to be adjusted during illness
(check with your doctor) but they can't be skipped altogether.
Kids need energy when they're sick to help the body heal
itself, and insulin helps them use that energy properly. Speak with
the diabetes health care team to make sure you understand what to
do during a sick day.
Myth: Kids with diabetes can't exercise.
Fact:
Exercise is important for all kids - with or without diabetes!
Exercise offers many benefits to kids with diabetes. It helps them
manage their weight and prevents them from gaining excess body fat.
It also improves cardiovascular health, boosts mood, relieves
stress, and helps blood sugar control. Discuss exercise guidelines
and blood sugar management with the diabetes health care team.
Myth: Low-carbohydrate diets are good for kids with diabetes
because they should avoid carbs.
Fact:
Carbohydrates (carbs) are the body's preferred source of
energy, and carbohydrate-containing foods should provide about 50%
to 60% of a person's calories each day. Low-carb diets tend to
be overloaded with protein and fat. Following a high-fat,
high-protein diet over the long term may increase the risks of
heart and kidney disease in adulthood (which people with diabetes
are already at increased risk for). People with diabetes should
follow a healthy, balanced diet. Usually this means adopting a meal
plan that helps them balance carbohydrate intake with medication
and exercise to achieve good diabetes control.
Myth: There are cures for diabetes, but doctors and the
government aren't telling anyone.
Fact:
No matter what you may hear or see on the Internet, there is no
cure for diabetes. Many scientists and researchers have dedicated
their careers to finding a cure for diabetes, and they've made
many advances in diabetes research. But the only way to manage
diabetes now is to take insulin and medications as prescribed, eat
a balanced diet, get plenty of physical activity, and check blood
sugar levels regularly. Until there really is a cure for diabetes,
do your best to manage your child's diabetes with the tools
available now.
Reviewed by:
Steven Dowshen, MD
Date reviewed: September 2007
Note: All information is for educational purposes only. For specific medical advice,
diagnoses, and treatment, consult your doctor.
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