Jacob was a normal 6 year old but then in the Spring of 2009 he started to act really strange. He was hungry and thirsty all the time yet he was losing a lot of weight. I remember being young and saying that he looked like a skeleton. He also had to urinate a lot more than a kid usually would. My mom told me a story of how we were all at the zoo one day and he asked to go to the bathroom 5 times in less than 1 hour. My parents knew something had to be wrong. They took him to the doctor and got his urine tested. His ketone levels were extremely high and he had to be taken to the hospital immediately. That is when they diagnosed him with Type 1 Diabetes. Here are 2 pictures of him in the hospital.On the top he is with our dad and on the bottom he is with his room mate who almost died from a burst appendix.What is Type 1 Diabetes?
According to The American Diabetes Association, Type 1 Diabetes is when the body does not produce insulin. It was previously known as juvenile diabetes because it is most common in children, however adults can develop this type also. Insulin is a hormone that is needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. People without this disease produce insulin in their pancreas however type 1 diabetics need to take insulin shots to maintain healthy glucose levels in their blood.
Symptoms of Type 1 Diabetes
I searched on the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International website and found that there are many warning signs for Type 1 Diabetes. They include:
- Extreme thirst
- Frequent urination
- Sudden vision changes
- Sugar in urine
- Fruity, sweet, or wine-like odor on breath
- Increased appetite
- Sudden weight loss
- Drowsiness, lethargy
- Heavy breathing
- Stupor
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