November is American Diabetes Month and the American Diabetes Association is using the month to raise awareness of the ever-growing disease — one of the main efforts behind the mission of the association. ADM is an important element in the effort, with special programs designed throughout the month to focus the nation’s attention on the issues surrounding diabetes and the many people who are impacted by the disease.
Recent statistics from the association show nearly 30 million children and adults — nearly 10 percent of the population in the United States, have diabetes. An additional 86 million Americans have pre-diabetes and are at risk for developing type 2 diabetes.
The association estimates that the total national cost of diagnosed diabetes in the United States is $245 billion.
Claiborne County native Vincent Bolden is your average 9-year-old kid — a good student, a friend to everyone he meets, and plays center and defensive end on the Claiborne Youth Football Cheer Super Grasscutters football team. Vince, as his friends and family call him, is different than most of his friends though — he was diagnosed at a very young age as a type 1 diabetic.
According to Vince’s mother Jackie, Vince was diagnosed with diabetes on March 31, 2007, at just 13-months-old.
In the week leading up to the diagnosis, Vince had been sick with flu-like symptoms — he was very lethargic, extremely thirsty, constantly urinating and could not keep any food down. The night before his parents took him to the doctor, Jackie told her husband Jamie she thought Vince’s blood sugar needed to be checked because of some of the symptoms he was experiencing.
Vince’s parents took him to his pediatrician the next morning. The pediatrician immediately checked his blood sugar — it was 468. They were sent straight to East Tennessee Children Hospital, where they spent the next week because Vince was in the first stages of diabetic ketoacidosis, a serious complication of diabetes that occurs when your body produces high levels of blood acids called ketones.
Vince had a predisposition for diabetes, with the illness being present on both sides of his family — Jamie’s mother and aunt were diabetics and Jackie’s grandfather was a diabetic.
Vincent is a type 1 diabetic and will spend the rest of his life dealing with the disease. Jackie explains her sons illness is an autoimmune disease where a person’s pancreas stops producing insulin because the body’s immune system attacks and destroys the insulin producing cells in the pancreas. She further explains insulin is the hormone that enables people to get energy from food, which is why diabetics count carbohydrate intake not sugar.
Despite the diagnosis, Vince has always lived a ‘normal’ life, beginning Springdale Elementary School at age 4 in the pre-K program. At a young age, Vince introduced his classmates into the world of diabetes, explaining the disease and the different types of treatment he uses as well as answering questions about the condition as his classmates try to understand what their friend is going through.
Currently, Vince is on an insulin pump that is on a basal and bolus delivery system. What this means is basal rates on an insulin pump delivers insulin continuously over 24 hours, and keeps his blood sugar level in range between meals and while he sleeps. Bolus rates on the pump goes by how many carbohydrates Vince eats at meals so he can see how much insulin he need to cover that food.
Vincent checks his blood sugar by a meter and with the new dexcom continuous glucose monitor. He also has an emergency glucagon kit that is only to be used if he has dropped so low that he is unable to eat or drink to raise his blood sugar.
When his monitor buzzes in class to let Vince know his sugar is below 80 or above 240, his classmates immediately ask if he is okay or needs anything. When Vince has to poke his finger in front of his class or teammates, they are amazed when he assures them it does not hurt.
Being part of the local football team is something Vince enjoys. With practices sometimes four nights a week and Saturday games, he always has to make sure his blood sugar is in a higher range before he plays because intense activity for him does cause his sugar to drop low. The dexcom is set to alert Vince and his parents if he is beginning to drop, so they can compensate with carbohydrates to bring his sugar back up. They also have to still do finger pricks to double check that the dexcom is sure his sugar is dropping.
It is also possible for his sugar go high during games or practice and then he has to take insulin through his pump and drink fluids so he does not start to develop ketones in his system, which could then lead back to the ketoacidosis. Some people think that if their blood sugar is high, diabetics should exercise to bring it down. Jackie explains this theory is wrong and can in fact make ketones worse.
When Vince checks his blood sugar he knows the protocol is when it is below 80, he eats 20 carbohydrates and rechecks his blood sugar after 15 -20 minutes to make sure it’s rising. Normal blood sugar range is 80-120, and above 240 can cause ketones.
For more information, visit the American Diabetes Association website and like their Facebook page.
Reach Reina P. Cunningham at 606-302-9091 or on Twitter @ReinaDailyNews
