DID YOU KNOW:
People with type 1 diabetes must check their blood sugar (glucose) levels throughout the day using a blood glucose meter. The meter tells them how much glucose is in their blood at that particular moment. Based upon the reading, they take insulin, eat, or modify activity to keep blood sugars within their target range. Regularly checking blood sugar levels is an essential part of type 1 diabetes care.
Checking, or testing, involves taking a drop of blood, usually from the fingertip, and placing it on a special test strip in a glucose meter. Blood sugar meters are easy to use, and even young children often learn quickly how to do their own blood sugar checks. In order to properly manage their diabetes, individuals with type 1 diabetes check their blood sugar levels several times per day. For example, they may test before eating lunch and before strenuous exercise.
Blood sugar levels are measured in milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL). A normal blood sugar level is between 70 and 120 mg/dL. Keeping blood sugar levels within this range may be difficult in children with diabetes. Therefore, an individuals doctor may adjust the target range (for example, 80-180 mg/dL).
However, people with diabetes can't always maintain blood sugar levels within the target range, no matter how hard they try. A person's varying schedules and eating habits, as well as the physical changes that occur as they grow, can send blood sugar levels out of range for no apparent reason. A person with type 1 diabetes should never be made to feel that it is their fault if their blood sugar levels are out of range.
3 comments:
I learned yesterday that the average life expectancy for a child diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in Rwanda is less than 5 years.
My daughter would be dead. She was dx 5 1/2 years ago.
Wear blue, sport circles, and participate in everything diabetes related that you can!
Pink hasn't cured breast cancer either, but it's so much MORE than the color. It's the purpose. The hope. The passion for a cure.
Did you know that diabetes kills more people per year than both breast cancer AND AIDS combined?
GO BLUE!
Thanks for sharing Wendy!
Great post! Education is everything, especially when it comes to diabetes. If people took the time to educate themselves and others there wouldn't be so much mis-information out there.
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