Prevalence of Diabetes in Children
One of the most common diseases found in children and teens is diabetes. 90 to 95% of children with diabetes have type 1 diabetes.the other 5 to 10% have type 2. Most of the time when a child is diagnosed with diabetes it is assumed to be type 1 but in the last 20 years type 2 diabetes has been on the rise with children and teens. More than a thousand children a year are diagnosed with diabetes and health care providers keep finding that more and more of these children have type 2 diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes is a metabolic disorder unlike type 1 which is an autoimmune disease. Instead of the body attacking itself and destroying the beta cells it develops a resistance to insulin and starts using it improperly. As a result glucose builds up in the blood causing eventual damage to the kidneys and other organs leading to more complications. Without the glucose being absorbed the body cannot produce energy leaving you feeling tired and exhausted all the time. Health care providers are finding more and more children with type 2 diabetes, a disease usually diagnosed in adults aged 40 years or older.