Report adds to ignorance about diabetes

ON a recent train journey I overheard a young man saying, “Diabetics have no one to blame but themselves for being sick. It’s their own fault for being fat.”

As a type 1 insulin-dependent diabetic I am only all too used to this common perception of diabetes being a lifestyle choice for those who would prefer a pint and a packet of crisps to a healthier existence.

Articles such as Evelyn Ring’s ‘Obesity and diabetes cause €168m overrun’ (September 6) simply add to the ignorance that exists with regards to diabetes.

Ms Ring’s report that “the growing use of insulin products is likely to continue for some time because of the continued increase in obesity levels” is a sweeping generalisation of diabetes and does not make the distinction between type 1 and type 2.

Type 2 diabetes occurs when insulin which the body produces is less efficient at moving sugar out of the bloodstream than a regular person. It usually occurs in people who are over 40 years old, overweight, and have a family history of type 2.

Type 1, on the other hand, is thought to be due to a virus or autoimmune disorder where the body attacks it own organs; in this case the pancreas, where insulin is made. It is often diagnosed in children and has no connection to diet, lifestyle or general health.

I have had type 1 diabetes for 21 years, diagnosed when I was seven.

I have injected myself four times a day for these 21 years, on top of testing my blood sugar levels up to six times a day.

Ms Ring’s article would have us believe obesity is the underlying reason for this, on top of costing the State millions of euro for mine, and others’, poor choice of lifestyle.

I am tired of the media’s portrayal of all diabetics being diagnosed because of poor dietary choice, lack of exercise and unhealthy living.

I am tired of opening magazines and reading tips on how to avoid diabetes by improving the quality of my lifestyle.

I am tired of having to explain to people I do not have the diabetes that is the result of a fat-loving, cholesterol-driven diet.

And I am tired of reading articles which do nothing to educate the public on the different types of diabetes that exist.

Kate Hyde

Watermeadow

Crosshaven

Co Cork