Young cyclist won't let diabetes keep her off the road

For the first time since its formation, Team Roche Accu-Chek, a group of cyclists with diabetes, will include a child, 12-year-old Michaela da Silva. Diagnosed four years ago with the disease, Michaela and her 30 team mates will be living proof that with the correct diet, medication, and monitoring of blood glucose levels, people with diabetes can lead a full and healthy life.

Michaela and the team's participation in this event is particularly appropriate, since November is Diabetes Month in South Africa, and World Diabetes Day falls on 14 November, just two days before the team races off from the starting line.

Improving people's understanding and awareness of this chronic condition is a critical aim of the UN-observed World Diabetes Day. While the incidence of diabetes amongst South African children is not clear, what is known is that it is growing. Worldwide, Type 1 Diabetes is growing by 3% per year in children and adolescents and at an alarming 5% per year amongst pre-school children.

It is estimated that 70 000 children under 15 develop Type 1 diabetes each year. Early diagnosis and early education are crucial to reducing complications and saving lives. Diabetes can strike children at any age and is often misdiagnosed in particularly low and middle income countries.

Michaela's parents Clive and Isabel da Silva, recall the feelings of shock and fear that reverberated through the family after the diagnosis. “We were devastated, and in a way, blamed ourselves, wondering what we had done wrong to cause this,” they said.

Roche Diagnostics' Dr. Mary Atkinson, Head Roche Diabetes Care South Africa, says however, that while diabetes is one of the most chronic diseases of childhood, striking at any age, it can be successfully managed through lifestyle changes and medication.

Exercise is very important in controlling blood sugar levels and decreasing the risk of diabetes complications. Up to 80% of Type-2 diabetes is preventable by adopting a healthy diet and increasing physical activity.

Type 1

In the case of Type-1 diabetes, a careful balance must be struck between the amount of food, exercise and medication the child is getting. Diet must be controlled, and regular testing of blood sugar levels also becomes a way of life. During school, Michaela tests her blood before each break.

Children with diabetes require the support of more than just the family unit. Michaela's mother, Isabel da Silva, ensures that her daughter's teachers understand that at times, she needs to eat something to keep her sugar levels right. They are also shown what to do should she ever go "hypo", when her blood sugar levels drop dangerously low.

“Initially the change in diet and routine was a problem,” remembers Clive. “But things do get easier, so easy in fact that it becomes second nature, like brushing your teeth every day.”

Today, thanks to the right treatment programme, Michaela is a happy, healthy grade six learner, who doesn't let diabetes stand in the way of her love of cycling and swimming.

“Living with a diabetic child or having diabetes yourself is not a death sentence, but a change of lifestyle, from which we've all benefited in fact, as we now all live healthier lives,” says Clive.

Unfortunately, many children in South Africa are not as fortunate as Michaela to have their diabetes so well controlled. Many parents remain unaware that symptoms such as extreme thirst, hunger and tiredness, blurred vision and sudden weight loss could be signs of diabetes, and so the condition is left unchecked.

World Diabetes Day on 14 November 2008 and South Africa's Diabetes Month in November are essential initiatives, aimed at creating greater awareness and education around managing this often serious chronic condition, allowing children with diabetes to lead full, healthy lives.

For more information log on to http://www.diabetes.co.za