HUG Chronicle –
“My child is drinking a lot and losing weight, could he have diabetes?”
Twice a month, a specialist from Geneva University Hospitals answers a public health question.
Pre Valérie Schwitzgebel,Associate physician, head of the Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetology Unit, HUG
Published today at 12:23 p.m.
Insulin injections are used to treat the disease when it destroys the cells that produce this hormone.
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Does your child drink several liters of water per day? Does he urinate very frequently, feel tired and lose weight despite having a good appetite? It is possible that he suffers from type 1 diabetes. In Switzerland, diabetes affects around 500,000 people, of whom 7 to 10% suffer from type 1 diabetes, less known than its cousin, type 2 diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes mainly affects children and adolescents. It is an autoimmune disease – the immune system wrongly attacks its own healthy cells – which occurs suddenly. It causes the destruction of insulin-producing cells in the body and leads to an increase in blood sugar levels. The first symptoms of type 1 diabetes are often trivial and therefore go unnoticed. Undetected and treated in time, they can nevertheless be fatal, especially for children under six years old.
The destruction of insulin-producing cells is in fact much more rapid and violent in children than in adults. Untreated diabetes can lead to ketoacidosis, which is excessive blood acidity. This is a serious complication.
Every year, children are treated in the HUG emergency rooms due to a rapid deterioration in their state of health. It is therefore very important to remember the warning signs of diabetes: very thirsty, frequent urination, overflowing diapers, bedwetting, weight loss, great fatigue and , when the disease is advanced, nausea and stomach aches.
If in doubt, do not hesitate to talk to your doctor and ask for a blood sugar level measurement (glycemia).
Currently, type 1 diabetes cannot be cured. It is treated by regular injection of insulin, either by a pump or an insulin pen, and the establishment of a diversified and balanced diet. You find video clips and other information on the symptoms, diagnosis and management of diabetes on this site and this dedicated page to type 1 diabetes.
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