Diabetes - Type 1 (Juvenile Diabetes)

More than five million Americans must take insulin every day. Insulin Dependent Diabetics say the greatest bane in their life is their daily quota of insulin shots they must endure. Additionally, receiving this many injections causes scar tissue to eventually form, which decreases insulin absorption, and decreases skin integrity.

Therefore, inhaling your daily dose of insulin was thought to be a real boost to the quality of life of those diabetics required to take daily insulin. Exubera was cited by many as the answer to a diabetic’s prayers. Diabetes is a disease that affects the amount of insulin and sugar in your body. Exubera is a human form of insulin and as such, lowers blood sugar concentrations by allowing the blood sugar to be taken up by cells as a source of fuel. Exubera is a powdered form of insulin that is able to be inhaled into the lungs through the patient's mouth using a specially designed inhaler.

Blood vessels are damaged for a wide variety of reasons; but especially due to diabetes and arteriosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). These damaged blood vessels become inflamed, and degeneration is progressive. Of course, the ultimate consequences of this process is significant: outcomes range from heart attacks, strokes, kidney failure, peripheral vascular disease, neurological manifestations, etc.

Almost everyone knows someone who has diabetes. An estimated 20.8 million people in the United States—7.0 percent of the population—have diabetes, a serious, lifelong condition. Of those, 14.6 million have been diagnosed, and 6.2 million have not yet been diagnosed. In 2005, about 1.5 million people aged 20 or older were diagnosed with diabetes

Diabetes is a disorder of metabolism—the way our bodies use digested food for growth and energy. Most of the food we eat is broken down into glucose, the form of sugar in the blood. Glucose is the main source of fuel for the body.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved a device that measures glucose levels continuously for up to seven days in people with diabetes.

While a standard fingerstick test records a person’s glucose level as a snapshot in time, the STS-7 Continuous Glucose Monitoring System (STS-7 System) measures glucose levels every five minutes throughout a seven-day period. This additional information can be used to detect trends and track patterns in glucose levels throughout the week that wouldn’t be captured by fingerstick measurements alone. However, diabetics must still rely on the fingerstick test to decide whether additional insulin is needed.

People with Type I Diabetes and some with Type II Diabetes will need to take insulin via injections for the rest of their lives. More than daily injections are not uncommon.

Anyone who has seen a diabetic giving themselves injections, knows this is not a fun event. Anyone who has had to teach a child to give themselves injections, know how frightening self-injections can be.

Now there are syringes which hav a lot shorter needle, and prefilled syringes. These syringes are more expensive, however, they are easier to use and a lot less uncomfortable.

What are the scope and impact of diabetes?

Diabetes is widely recognized as one of the leading causes of death and disability in the United States. In 2002, it was the sixth leading cause of death. However, diabetes is likely to be underreported as the underlying cause of death on death certificates. About 65 percent of deaths among those with diabetes are attributed to heart disease and stroke.