Lions are united behind five global causes: Diabetes, Vision, Hunger, Environment and Childhood Cancer.
Diabetes
Lion Kimber’s journey with her diabetes diagnosis
“You have type 1 diabetes.” The words echoed in my mind. Starting high school was a major life change in itself; now I would be a freshman learning how to manage diabetes. Before I knew what was happening, I was learning how to count carbohydrates for each meal and snack. But the only way I could ensure not to over-indulge was turning my fingers into pin cushions. Once, before lunch, I got a paper cut and had my mom get my glucometer ready, so I could avoid a needle stick. At my first endocrinology visit, I practiced injections with insulin syringes filled with saline. My trembling hand inched towards my pinched abdomen until the needle tip just touched my skin, causing me to freeze until the nurse advanced my hand inserting the needle. After a couple of tries, I was successful at administering injections to myself should it become necessary. Fortunately, I have only needed insulin during my pregnancies.
General Information
Multiple daily needle sticks are a fact of life for many Diabetics. Those with type 1, an autoimmune disease, are also typically known as insulin dependent diabetics, and previously referred to as juvenile diabetes, as their body does not produce insulin and require exogenous insulin administration. To help reduce the number of daily shots some of these patients opt to get an insulin pump. Type 2 diabetics are also known as noninsulin dependent diabetics as their bodies still produce insulin. These individuals could be treated with diet/exercise, oral medications, non-insulin injection, or sometimes will need exogenous insulin. Since there are different classes of oral and injectable medication that have differing mechanisms of action to help control one’s glucose levels multiple medications can be used together. Over the past 15 years or so research has shed light on type 1.5 which is a hybrid of type 1 and 2. Like type 1 it is an autoimmune disease but typically occurs later in life like type 2.
Whether type 1, 1.5, or 2 diabetics all have 1 thing in common monitoring control via a HbA1C (hemoglobin A1C). This is a 12-week average glucose control. A normal A1c is 5.7 or less, prediabetes is 5.7-6.4, and diabetes is 6.5 or greater. When being treated for diabetes treatment goal is for an A1C of 7 or less. Maintaining control of blood sugar levels is crucial to avoid secondary complications such as kidney disease (nephropathy), loss of sensation in fingers and toes (neuropathy), and changes in vision (diabetic retinopathy) to name a few. Despite their level of sugar control diabetics are at increased risk for heart disease, infection, and delayed wound healing.
