Diabetes Counts: 8/21/11

Monday, August 22, 2011

Tour of the Valley

Do you like to ride your bike?

Would you like to ride with other families, type 1s, and be a part of something fun here in Grand Junction for free?!

Contact Diabetes Counts

or Community Hospital

about joining us for the

Tour of the Valley Ride

This next Sunday
August 28th, 2011!

Community Hospital is going to help pay for type 1 entry fee and if you need a riding buddy we have volunteers to ride with you! You can choose a 15,30, 50, 75, or 100 mile ride.

Please call Community Hospital and let them know you are a type 1 family who is wanting to ride and they will cover your entry fee.

We will start at the Doubletree Hotel @ 7AM and we look forward to seeing you there!

What is Type 1 Diabetes?

Diabetes (medically known as diabetes mellitus) is the name given to disorders in which the body has trouble regulating its blood glucose, or blood sugar, levels. There are two major types of diabetes: type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes, also called juvenile diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes, is a disorder of the body's immune system -- that is, its system for protecting itself from viruses, bacteria or any "foreign" substances. A third form of diabetes called monogenic diabetes, is sometimes mistaken for type 1 diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes occurs when the body's immune system attacks and destroys certian cells in the pancreas, an organ about the size of a hand that is located behind the lower part of the stomach. These cells -- called beta cells -- are contained, along with other types of cells, within small islands of endocrine cells called the pancreatic islets. Beta cells normally produce insulin, a hormone that helps the body move the glucose contained in food into cells throughout the body, which use it for energy. But when the beta cells are destroyed, no insulin can be produced, and the glucose stays in the blood instead, where it can cause serious damage to all the organ systems of the body.

For this reason, people with type 1 diabetes must take insulin in order to stay alive. This means undergoing multiple injections daily, or having insulin delivered through an insulin pump, and testing their blood sugar by pricking their fingers for blood six or more times a day. People with diabetes must also carefully balance their food intake and their exercise to regulate their blood sugar levels, in an attempt to avoid hypoglycemic (low blood sugar) and hypergylcemic (high blood sugar) reactions, whick can be life threatening.

This and more, like the signs of type 1 diabetes, can be found on the JDRF website @ http://www.jdrf.org/index.cfm?page_id=101982

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Monday, August 22, 2011

Tour of the Valley

What is Type 1 Diabetes?

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