Diabetes and hypertension: why should we limit sugar in early childhood?
A child’s first 1,000 days can influence the rest of their life. A diet low in sugar in utero and in the first two years, i.e. for 1,000 days from conception, considerably reduces the risk of chronic diseases in adulthood. Published in the journal Science on October 31, the study focuses on the period of sugar rationing introduced in Great Britain from 1942 until September 1953.
LThe subtitle of the comic strip written by Blayais Martial Maury “My life in diabetes” indicates: the adventures of a patient without fear and without reproach. Which is not entirely true. In fact, when his family doctor pricked his finger to test his blood sugar level and saw him turn pale, Martial was scared. And even more so, when the same doctor ordered him to rush to the Bordeaux hospital. And even more so the following nights which turned out to be rather sleepless. “I kept telling myself, ‘why me?’” he remembers. I went from being healthy to being sick overnight. If my older brother hadn’t developed the same illness a few years earlier, I wouldn’t have understood what was happening to me. » Hence the reproaches. He worried a lot: “I should have been wary of my bad eating habits…”
Martial Maury’s illness does not necessarily have to do with his diet. Insulin-dependent diabetes is an autoimmune condition that affects 300,000 people in France, from childhood. “A few weeks before the diagnosis was made,” he says, “I was drinking a lot more water than normal, I was thirsty all the time. I woke up several times a night to pee, I was very hungry, all the time, I was tired and I was losing weight. The hospitalization which lasted a week put me in the swing of things, without transition. Diet, forget the sugar in coffee, sodas, jam. Learning to inject myself with insulin several times a day, measuring my blood sugar level… A whole education to do again. » Martial Maury returned home a little shaken, but ready to change pace and habits.
The whole family involved
Martial writes books and takes care of his small family as a stay-at-home father. Storybooks, funny stories throughout his inspiration. Otherwise, he goes to buy bread, accompanies his three sons to school, picks them up in the evening, takes them to community, sporting and cultural activities. He prepares meals and knows exactly how a vacuum cleaner works. A new activity was added to his daily routine: managing his diabetes. “It’s become a family affair,” he concedes. My wife and I explained to the children the situation, the concept of my illness, the signs of hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia, the daily injections and the new way I was eating. At the beginning, let’s say the first week and probably a little the second, I followed the dietary precepts to the letter. Then over time, I adapted. Two things were difficult for me: cutting out sugar in coffee, and stopping jam, I’m crazy about jam. »
Type 2 diabetes: the danger of ultra-processed foods
Sodas, industrial products such as cordon bleu, nuggets, cold cuts with nitrites, dehydrated vegetable soups, most industrial breads and brioches, cereal bars… Ultra-processed products have undergone numerous physical transformations, chemical or biological. In fact, they no longer have much to do with the original food.
In 2013, Martial Maury wrote a “Little impertinent dictionary of diabetes”, but we must believe that he was not finished with the cathartic virtue of writing to accept his illness, since this year, it is a comic book which he publishes. Even funnier, downright perched at times. “My life in diabetes”, published by Éditions du Rocher, talks about him, his family and his diabetes. No need to be diabetic to dive into this book. Martial was sketched by Jean-Christophe Mazurie, illustrator, and science journalist Florence Heimburger provided the educational decodings validated by an expert.
“Diabetes, when it hits you as an adult, it takes a little time to get used to it. You struggle, but since you have no choice, the sooner you accept it, the better you live with it.”
The Martial of the comic strip who we see struggling with his disorders, his various symptoms, his doubts and his changes of mood bears a striking resemblance to François Hollande, which does not spoil the reader’s pleasure. Same roundness, same humor. However, before being ready to laugh about it, Martial Maury went through some critical periods. “Diabetes, when it hits you as an adult, it takes a little time to get used to it. You struggle, but since you have no choice, the sooner you accept it, the better you live with it. I learned to listen to my body, to be attentive, whereas until then I was a negligent owner. »
The new Martial started walking, cycling, golfing, without getting upset “in order to maintain a correct blood sugar level”, he specifies. His three sons learned to tell the difference between true hypoglycemia and a temporary bad mood. “I’ve become a routine guy,” he admits good-naturedly. “I no longer leave anything to chance, from now on I am a man under control. I anticipate, it requires constant exercise. »
“My life in diabetes” is a comic book adventure, scientifically validated, humanly attested, humorously ratified. A book that allows neo-diabetics to understand their illness and their loved ones, to support this invisible pathology to help them bear the daily burden.
“My life in diabetes” published by Éditions du Rocher by Martial Maury, Florence Heimburger and Jean-Christophe Mazurie. Price: €19.90.
