The old saying “the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree” reflects the way diabetes affects American families. If mom or dad is overweight, gets little or no exercise, or makes poor food choices, then yheir children are likely to do the same. This puts even our youngest at risk for increased blood sugar, weight gain, and prediabetes, which can become full-blown type 2 diabetes.

This form of diabetes occurs when the body doesn’t produce enough insulin, or when cells in the body don’t use insulin properly. In the past, children typically experienced only type 1 diabetes which left them dependent on insulin injections because, for reasons still unclear to researchers, their pancreas was unable to make insulin).

Type 1 diabetes comprises only one in 10 cases nationwide. Recently there’s been a major increase in the number of children diagnosed with type 2 (what used to be called adult onset) diabetes because of the increasing prevalence of obesity and sedentary lifestyles in our children, say experts at the National Diabetes Education Program at the National Institutes of Health.

Diabetes makes family life a struggle. Dining out, eating cake and ice cream at a birthday party, or doing almost anything spontaneously—an overnight trip, a day at the mall—can become difficult when you or someone you love is dependent on artificial insulin or diabetes medications.

Diabetes can ravage your health, especially if it’s poorly controlled. It can lead to heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, blindness, amputations, nerve damage, and dangerous pregnancy complications. Research shows that 65% of people with diabetes die from a heart attack or a stroke, and they die younger than Americans who don’t have it.

Eating right, exercising, and maintaining a healthy weight can prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes. If you’re like most busy women, you often allow your own health habits to falter while caring for those around you. Nearly one out of 10 American women ages 20 and older has diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association.


There is no cure for type 2 diabetes. Once diagnosed, you’ll have to control its effects for the rest of your life. The first treatment is usually meal planning, weight loss, and exercise aimed at achieving and maintaining a healthy blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol.

The goals for most women are an A1C (blood sugar measurement) of less than 7%, blood pressure below 130/80, and total cholesterol below 200 with your HDL cholesterol above 55 and your LDL cholesterol less than 100.

When all else fails, your health care provider can suggest drugs or insulin injections to keep blood sugar levels in check. One class of drugs triggers your pancreas to make and release more insulin; another causes the insulin receptors on your cells to work better. Because diabetes dramatically increases your risks for heart disease, your care provider may also prescribe antihypertensive medication to control your blood pressure and drugs called statins to keep your cholesterol in a normal range.

Living with diabetes means regularly checking your blood sugar, sometimes even several times a day. Home-testing kits such as finger-stick kits or glucometers can provide instant blood-sugar readings. Your health care provider will also want to regularly check your A1C level. To make sure diabetes is not causing other health complications, you should also have regular eye exams, blood and urine tests for kidney function, and additional checks for any circulatory or neurological problems.

The more yes answers you give to each of the following questions, the greater your risk for developing prediabetes and diabetes:

• Is your family background African American, Hispanic, American Indian, Asian American or Pacific Islander?
• Have you ever been told your blood sugar is “borderline high” or “high?”
• Have you ever had gestational diabetes or given birth to a baby weighing more than 9 lbs?
• Is your blood pressure 130/90 or higher?
• Is your total cholesterol 200 or higher?
• Are you overweight or obese?
• Do you get little or no exercise?
• Have you been told you have polycystic ovary syndrome?

Starting in your 40s, you should be screened for diabetes every three years; if you are risk for diabetes, you’ll probably be tested earlier and more often. Overweight children at high risk should be screened every two years beginning at age 10 or at puberty, whichever comes first.


Be a role model: Teach your children the difference between healthy foods and treats; keep treats rare.

Tune out and get moving: Eat meals as a family or in groups, not in front of the TV; you’ll be more likely to make better choices. Shut off the TV, get up, and make together time active time.

Stock smartly: Keep healthy snacks on hand, like mozzarella cheese sticks, graham crackers, ginger snaps, celery with peanut butter, or nuts. And don’t use food as a reward or restrict food as a punishment.

Become an activist: Rally to have healthy foods, fresh fruits, whole-grain cereal bars, and packages of mixed nuts in the vending machines at your local schools.

About the Author: Claudia Reid Ravin, CNM, MSN, a certified nursemidwife and director for educational services in Washington, DC.