How Technology Is Helping a Latina Teen With Diabetes Manage Her Condition
Ambar Chacoma was nine when she was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Now 13, she’s sharing her story to inspire other kids to embrace their diagnosis and learn how diabetes technology can help them live their lives to the fullest.
At the time of her diagnosis, Ambar Chacoma didn’t feel sick, but she did have worrisome symptoms, including increased thirst and frequent urination.
Ambar’s pediatrician tested her urine and detected high sugar, a sign of diabetes. The doctor immediately sent her to the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. On the way to the hospital, Ambar had blurry vision, another diabetes symptom. When she arrived at the hospital, doctors diagnosed her with type 1 diabetes.
“In that moment, it was just like, ‘Wow, a whole new thing,’” she says. “I had never really been sick before. And then out of nowhere, they told me I had diabetes.”
After the diagnosis, the family, who lives in Burbank, learned all they could about the disease. Three days after that hospital visit, Ambar had her fırst appointment with an endocrinologist, a diabetes specialist.
Diabetes in the Hispanic community
Over 122 million Americans have diabetes or pre-diabetes, a chronic condition affecting how the body turns food into energy. With type 2 diabetes, the most common type, the body doesn’t use insulin well and struggles to keep blood sugar at normal levels, while type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disorder where the body no longer makes insulin.
The disease impacts the Hispanic community at a disproportionate rate. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Hispanics are 17 percent more likely to have type 2 diabetes compared to Caucasians, and they’re also at greater risk to have pre-diabetes. However, in Hispanic youths the prevalence of type 1 diabetes is sharply increasing.
“You always worry,” says Ambar’s father Carlos Chacoma, an Argentinean immigrant who, along with his wife, moved to Los Angeles 20 years ago.
He and his wife want their daughter to live as normal a life as possible. They help her monitor her blood sugar levels and her diet. For the fırst year, Ambar treated her diabetes with multiple daily insulin injections.
A few years ago, she started using an insulin pump system made by Medtronic. The device’s continuous glucose monitor keeps track of Ambar’s sugar levels every fıve minutes, 24 hours a day. Based on those readings, the pump delivers continuous and customizable doses of insulin based on her healthcare provider’s recommendations.
Taking care of herself
“I’ve come to understand that I have to take care of myself,” says Ambar, who’s bilingual in English and Spanish.
She and her family decided a pump was the ideal way to manage her condition.
“We realized that if I had the pump on, I wouldn’t have to give myself shots, I wouldn’t have as many bruises, and it wouldn’t have hurt as much,” says Ambar.
Carlos says his daughter is very responsible, noting they learned the pump together. They receive lots of support from Medtronic. For example, one morning Ambar was having a problem with her pump at 6 a.m. Her father called the 24-hour technical support team and right away, they were able to help fıx the problem.
“I know that the relationship with Medtronic will be forever,” says Carlos, who’s a Medtronic diabetes ambassador helping people, including Latinos, manage the chronic condition.
The company’s commitment
Medtronic is deeply committed to supporting a culture of inclusion and diversity, which means cultivating a workforce that ref lects the patients and partners the company serves.
“The broad range of ideas and diversity of experiences are what drive innovation, creativity, and better decision-making; ultimately leading to better outcomes for patients,” said Dr. Sally Saba, chief inclusion and diversity offıcer at Medtronic. “At Medtronic, we work hard to create a culture where diverse talent can thrive.”
“A part of me”
Ambar says when she grows up, if there isn’t a cure for diabetes, she wants to fınd it.
“It’s a part of me that I can’t ignore,” says Ambar. “I have to make the most out of it.”
Her father wants others to know diabetes is manageable: “You can live a normal life as a kid, as a family, because you have advanced technology and a community of support.”