It was so hard hearing my doctor tell me that I have diabetes. I can't even imagine being a parent of a child that is diagnosed as diabetic. How do you explain to your child that they cannot have the same treats they see all the other children enjoying? Are you able to come up with alternatives that are acceptable to them or do they somehow feel different? Do you test their blood or do they do it themselves? My heart really goes out to the parents of diabetic children.

Fancy, what type of diabetes do you have? I understand how hard it must be to restrict children on chocolates and other sweets. However, it doesn't follow that your child is also diabetic, if you have one.

My daughter, age 9, has a diabetic classmate. The teacher goes out of her way to make sure that there are appropriate snacks for her special student. I think having good communication with the teacher is key.

I guess maybe I see it differently you know. Cause to me i appreciate life no matter how it comes. And having diabeties isnt the end of the world just because you have to change th intake of your sweets.

Actually most people with Type 1 CAN have the occassional treat and eat normally. All we have to do is match our insulin dosage to what we eat. It's called "carb counting". The new fast insulins called "analogues" are very good now and are absorbed quickly.

Many T1's, such as myself, also have an insulin pump, which allows for constant and very preicse dosing.

T1 is caused by an insulin deficiency, not insulin resistance (Type 2) so we can eat normally provided we take insulin for it and have not become overweight.

Of course, it is not healthy for anyone to eat crap all the time, but we CAN have a treat if we account for it.

Some kids must follow a "stricter" plan since they are on the older insulin dosing routines or their parents don't know how to carb count. For most though, the new insulins and insulin pumps allow much more freedom. Don't forget that ANY carbs raise blood sugar levels, whether they come from cake or come from an apple. 15 grams of carbs=15 grams of carbs. An apple given to a diabetic kid will raise the blood sugar the same as a 4-5 Lifesavers candies. Or, 3 medium oranges will cause the same raise as a can of Coke (45 grams of carbs). Of course the candy will raise the BG quicker (but it really doesn't matter if you make no insulin to cover it without a shot anyway, you will still go high without it) and is less healthy, but it still affects blood sugar the same amount in a T1 as something "healthy".

Everyone (T1 kids included) should still eat healthily most of the time, but they CAN usually have treats like everyone else, provided their blood sugar is not high at the time.

The risks of Type 1 diabetes (very hard to manage in a child especially) include:

The risk of death daily from severe high blood glucose and ketone production (DKA) OR low blood sugar seizures. Type 1's do not have insulin resistance like Type 2's and have a faulty counter-mechanism for low blood sugar (Still intact in T2), so they are usually very prone to low blood sugar and are insulin sensitive. Search Type 1 and the "Dead in Bed Syndrome" on the net and you will find many cases of young T1's who have died from the above.

Having wide swings and large fluctuations in BG's daily due to the fact that they must use crude injections to completely take the place of an organ that regulates BG 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Not to mention that many factors affect blood sugars, and some we can't control or predict. It's almost impossible to manage.

The risk of severe complications and early death due to the (usually) early onset of diabetes and severe extremes in blood sugars.

This is in addition to the fact that everyone confuses T1 (not preventable) with T2, and wrongly blames you and your parents for your disease, and the fact that you have to take multiple injections and figersticks just to stay out of a coma and stay simply ALIVE and breathing.

I think this is a little more worse than simply "not eating sweets", don't you?

For some families, it may feel like the end of the world. And it's ok to feel overwhelmed. Type 1 diabetes is a tough disease. It is not always "manageable", and I want people to know that.

I know what you mean kind of, When I was told I didn't do anything but say ok so now what? It was no reason for me to get down or dwell because I knew I couldn't change it. I guess me being purely healthy was over with,lol.