When it comes to diabetes, we often think that only adults can get this disease. However, a question arises: can children get diabetes? If so, how can diabetes be prevented in children? Please read the answers to the above questions in the article below!

Diabetes is a disease that greatly affects the overall health and directly affects the patient’s spirit. Anyone is at risk of getting diabetes, including children. So what causes children to get diabetes? How to prevent diabetes in children?

Risk of diabetes in children

Diabetes, also known as diabetes mellitus, is a condition in which blood glucose levels are high. Normally, the hormone insulin helps glucose move from the blood to the cells in the body, then converts glucose into energy. However, in children with diabetes, the amount of insulin produced by the pancreas is deficient compared to the amount of glucose or the body’s response to insulin is problematic, causing glucose not to be converted into energy and increasing blood sugar levels. So what are the risk factors that cause children to have diabetes?

According to experts, some of the following factors are considered to be the cause of diabetes in children, specifically as follows:

Genetics

Genetic factors are a cause of diabetes in children, accounting for about 10 – 20%. Accordingly, genetic factors related to diabetes in children are shown in the fact that from birth, the child has abnormalities in the process of insulin production in the body or has antibodies that resist insulin. This is the cause of the phenomenon of glucose in the blood not being regulated stably and causing diabetes in children.

Genetic factors of diabetes in children are also found in pregnant women with gestational diabetes. If the mother has gestational diabetes during pregnancy and it is not detected early and treated promptly, it can cause the child to be born with diabetes.

Childhood diabetes is linked to genetic factors

Unreasonable diet

Unscientific diet is a very common cause of diabetes in children. Accordingly, processed foods, fried foods, sweets, soft drinks, carbonated drinks, foods rich in carbohydrates… are all favorite foods of most children. Excessive consumption of the above foods will cause many negative effects on children’s health and increase the risk of many dangerous diseases in children, including diabetes.

Unscientific lifestyle

In addition to consuming many foods that are harmful to the body, unscientific lifestyle habits are also a factor that increases the risk of diabetes in children. Bad habits such as eating at irregular times, being lazy to exercise, not exercising… not only lead to diabetes but also many other diseases such as obesity, high blood pressure…

Gestational diabetes

During pregnancy, pregnant women have a relatively high risk of diabetes. If the mother has gestational diabetes, the child born also has a high risk of diabetes. Therefore, pregnant women need to take measures to prevent gestational diabetes during pregnancy and detect it early and treat it properly if unfortunately infected to minimize the negative effects on the fetus.

Pregnant women with gestational diabetes are also at risk of having children with diabetes.

Negative effects of diabetes in children

Children with diabetes are not only affected physically but also mentally. Below are the negative effects of diabetes on children with the disease, specifically as follows:

Mental effects

Diabetes in children can lead to many negative mental effects, including:

• Feelings of isolation: Children with diabetes may feel isolated from their friends due to special and strict requirements for diet and disease management.
• Anxiety and depression: Having to closely manage the disease every day and concerns about complications can make children anxious, even depressed.
• Lack of confidence and negative effects on self-image: Children with diabetes may develop negative feelings about themselves and their bodies due to changes related to the disease.
• Fatigue: Diabetes can make children feel constantly tired, which can negatively affect their ability to concentrate and perform daily activities.

Children with diabetes may often experience anxiety and depression.

Physical Impact

Diabetes in children not only affects the spirit but can also cause many physical impacts on children, including:

• Glucose metabolism disorder: The process of converting glucose in the blood into energy is disrupted when children have diabetes, thereby causing blood sugar levels to always be higher than normal.
• Kidney failure: Diabetes is a cause of kidney failure.
• High blood pressure and cardiovascular disease: High blood sugar can cause high blood pressure and cause many other cardiovascular problems.
• Weight loss or unusual weight gain: The weight of children with diabetes can change suddenly for no apparent reason.
• Fatigue: Children with diabetes often tend to fall into a state of fatigue and lethargy.
• Peripheral neuropathy: Children’s hands and feet are often numb and itchy.
• Impaired vision: Children with diabetes may experience impaired vision.
• Slow-healing wounds: Skin wounds in children with diabetes often take longer to heal than normal.

How to prevent diabetes in children

Diabetes in children has certain effects on the physical and mental health of children. Therefore, taking measures to prevent diabetes in children will help reduce the risk of disease in children. Below are measures to prevent diabetes in children that parents should know, specifically as follows:

Diet

As mentioned above, an unhealthy diet is one of the causes of diabetes in children. Therefore, to prevent diabetes in children, parents need to pay attention to their children’s diet.

A healthy diet needs to ensure:

• Limit sugar and starch: Avoid carbonated drinks or soft drinks, control the amount of starch taken into the body.
• Low fat, cholesterol and salt: Limit the consumption of fast food and greasy foods.
• Rich in fiber: Eat lots of green vegetables, fruits, whole grains and lean protein.

In addition, parents should divide their children’s meals into many small meals to better control blood sugar. At the same time, increase water intake to help the body’s activities take place better and support stable blood sugar control.

Eating scientifically is an effective way to prevent diabetes in children.

Lifestyle

In addition to diet, a reasonable lifestyle and exercise regimen also contribute to effective diabetes prevention in children. Parents should encourage their children to:

• Exercise: Regular daily exercise will help improve overall health and control stable blood sugar levels.
• Get enough sleep: Sleep plays a very important role in stabilizing blood sugar levels as well as overall health. Make sure your child gets enough sleep from 9 to 11 hours/night.
• Maintain a reasonable weight: Being overweight or obese is a factor that increases the risk of type 2 diabetes. Therefore, parents need to ensure that their child’s weight is within normal limits to prevent diabetes and many other diseases caused by overweight – obesity.
• Regular health check-ups: Parents should take their children for regular health check-ups to detect risk factors or diseases early, thereby having appropriate remedies.

Above is information about diabetes prevention measures in children that parents should know. In addition to implementing diabetes prevention measures for their children, parents should also have educational measures to help their children better understand diabetes and the importance of controlling the disease as well as complying with the treatment regimen.