Compass Fitness.com DIABETES IN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS
The incidence of diabetes in children has risen significantly over the last 2 decades in large part attributable to the rise in childhood obesity. It used to be that children rarely developed type 2 diabetes. In the past, if a child developed diabetes it was usually type 1 diabetes. The correlation of type 1 diabetes to children was so strong that type 1 diabetes used to be referred to as “child on-set diabetes” or “juvenile on-set diabetes” and the much more common type of diabetes-type 2 diabetes -was referred to as “adult on-set diabetes.” However, with the rise of obesity in children, the incidence of type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents has also risen.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has sited epidemics of obesity and low levels of physical activity levels in youth as potentially major contributing factors to the rise in type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents. The incidence of type 2 diabetes in children and adolescents is higher for non-whites. According to the CDC, American Indian youths have the highest incidence of type 2 diabetes.
The results of a clinical trial focused on the effectiveness of type 2 diabetes treatments in treating children and adolescents aged 10-17 with type 2 diabetes found that oral medications commonly prescribed to adults had high failure rates in treating children. The oral medications included in the trial were metformin (Glucophage) and rosaglitazone (Avandia). Additionally treatment with metformin in combination with intensive lifestyle regiments were also less effective in children than adults. These results are especially concerning because the longer a person has uncontrolled glucose levels the greater the risk of developing diabetic complications such as heart disease, eye problems, nerve damage, amputations and kidney failure.
More effective treatments are needed for children and adolescents with diabetes. Right now the most effective treatment is prevention through a healthy lifestyle consisting of a healthy diet and exercise to maintain a healthy weight. A fasting blood glucose of 100-125 mg/dl is a diagnosis of pre-diabetes also referred to as Impaired Fasting Glucose (IFG). Blood glucose tests can be done by your child’s pediatrician.
If pre-diabetes is diagnosed than lifestyle interventions should be implemented. The child’s daily diet should be evaluated to ensure that it’s high in fruits and vegetables and low in simple sugars and saturated fats. The child should have daily physical fitness such as power walking, jogging, swimming or biking. If a pre-diabetic child is overweight, it is very important to ensure that exercise is done at a high enough intensity to achieve weight loss results. Methods such as target heart rate or Rate of Perceived Exertion can be used to gauge intensity. Reference Achieving Optimal Exercise Intensity for more information about the appropriate exercise intensity for achieving goals such as cardio fitness and weight loss.
It is very important to begin a fitness program which is enjoyable meaning that the diet should consist of healthy foods which the child really likes and the exercise activities should be activities which the child enjoys. If the fitness program is designed according to the child’s personal preferences then he or she will have fun with fitness. Eating healthy and getting active to help prevent diabetes is the very best approach to reducing the incidence of diabetes in children and adolescents.
