STRUGGLING TO UNDERSTAND YOUR DIABETES?

An innovative free resource is now available to help people with type 2 manage treatment and better understand their hypos. “Around 80 per cent of medical information provided by doctors is forgotten straight away,” says Cathryn Corcoran, CEO at Medicine X. “The Xplained resources are designed to fill these gaps in a creative and powerful way.” Using real-life examples, the website explains the warning signs, managing low BGLs, treatment, education and the long-term effects you may

experience if you do not manage your BGLs well. For more information, visit type2diabetesexplained.com.au.

At what age did you allow your children to be independent enough to start to control their own diabetes management?

Elissa says: If my children ever wanted to do their own blood glucose test, I would allow them to. I even let Freddie at three years of age do this. I also allowed my children the choice between having an extra injection and eating extra food or not eating at all. Even three-year-old Freddie would give himself his own needle under my watchful eye.

I always took control of doing their BGLs and recording this into their Record book, giving injections if they didn’t feel like being involved or were a little burnt out.

However, we found that once my boys started on the Insulin Pump, they became even more independent. Now they are all healthy teenagers and adults, I can see that giving them this freedom has set them up for consistent and confident self-management. ➤

JDRF Australia is currently funding a pilot program that has recently launched with the aim of creating a non-invasive test that can indicate whether a child is at risk of developing type 1 diabetes before they develop symptoms. An early diagnosis is believed to not only raise awareness through early identification, but would in most cases prevent the individual from experiencing the serious, and sometimes fatal, complication known as diabetic ketoacidosis – which is often when many families are currently receiving a diagnosis.

This program is still in its early stages, with multiple aspects still to be considered by researchers.

I've been thinking of starting continuous glucose monitoring but am not sure which type is best for me...

Sultan says: Continuous glucose monitoring gives you greater control over your BGLs as you can assess how you are tracking. It's also great for your diabetes team to make treatment changes. These systems record 288 readings every 24 hours, far better than a few finger-stick tests.

There are a few systems and expect to see more soon. The Libre CGMS will give you a glucose reading each time you scan the sensor with its device, but will only give you a low/high alarm when you do a scan. Dexcom and Medtronic have auto alarm systems and even let you know if they think you're at risk of going low. Medtronic 640G insulin pump wearers have an added safety that the pump will stop insulin delivery if the sensor predicts you are going to go low before it happens!

The type of system depends on what you want to achieve. It is worth spending time with your doctor or educator to get the right system for you. ➤