This Year World Diabetes Day of is Focused on Children (Portal of Prague)

Each year the International Federation of Diabetes nominates a topic concerning diabetes mellitus. For the year 2008, the organisation is focused on children and adolescents, as they are becoming a high risk group registering a dramatic increase in the amount of people with this illness. The campaign culminates on the 14th of November, on World Diabetes Day.

According to reports by WHO and the Chancellor of the Czech Republic, diabetes is one of the most frequently occurring children’s illnesses. It can affect kids of any age including newborns and toddlers.

The appearance of diabetes type I in children and adolescents is increasing each year by three percent and in pre-school children by as much as five percent. It’s estimated that each year up to seventy thousand children up to the age of fifteen become ill with diabetes type I, which is two hundred children per day. Currently it’s estimated that there are more than four hundred thousand children with diabetes type I.

On the increase is also the number of children and teenagers diagnosed with diabetes type II, which is closely connected to inactive life styles. This type of diabetes used to be prevalent only in adults. According to WHO, this is an alarming finding considering the fact that more than half of the cases of diabetes type II can be prevented. On the contrary, despite modern treatment methods, roughly half of the children with diabetes (both types), diagnosed up to the age of twelve, show other complications which make everyday life much harder.

The organisation points to the fact that many child patients, especially in developing countries, are dying because their parents do not have money for the medication.

This is why this year the World Diabetes Day is focusing on children and teenagers to increase awareness of the illness and its consequences. This takes place every year on the birthday of Frederic Banting who, together with Charles Best, first formulated the ideas which led to the discovery of insulin in 1922.

Campaign for the World Diabetes Day of in 2008 is focusing on:

Increasing the number of children supported by the program of International Diabetes Federation under the name of Life for a Child.
Increasing the awareness of the warning signs of diabetes.
Strengthening enterprises focused on lowering the occurrence of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) by distributing materials supporting these initiatives.
Promoting a healthy lifestyle with the aim of preventing the spread of diabetes type II with children.