Diabetes in children

摘要

INTRODUCTION: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic medical condition resulting in high levels of blood glucose. DM is caused by insufficient insulin production or insufficient sensitivity to insulin, or a mixture of both. Type 1 DM develops if the body cannot produce insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps the glucose to enter the cells where it is used as fuel by the body. Type 1 DM is the most common type of diabetes seen in children but overall accounts for only 10 per cent of all people (i.e. children and adults) with DM (Diabetes UK, 2011).Type2 DM develops when the insulin produced by the body is not working properly (insulin resistance) or not enough is being made. Type 2 DM is associated with factors such as obesity, South Asian ethnicity and family history (Haines et al, 2007). Type 2 DM is thought to affect older people. However, type 2 DM is becoming increasingly common in children due to increasing obesity in children. This article will discuss Type 1 DM, the most common types seen in children and is referred to as diabetes in the rest of the article.