The Rusing family of Tucson, Arizona, run a remarkably successful lemonade stand. The stand began as a way to keep the kids occupied, but turned into a bit of a money maker. It's been so successful, in fact, that it's now in the running for the title of Best Lemonade Stand in America. Yes! There is such a thing. Cute, huh?

The Rusings donate the proceeds from the stand to diabetes research. The stand is named "The Mighty Quinns" for Quinn Rusing. Quinn, who is four-years-old, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age three. He helps run the lemonade stand, along with mom, Carolyn, and six-year-old twin sisters, Cali and Olivia. The secret to their success appears to be the free cookies. That's right. Free Famous Amos cookies with each 25-cent glass of lemonade purchased.

Spot anything odd about this story? Lemonade stand with free cookies as a diabetes fundraiser?? Um, what about all that sugar?! I spotted this story about the Rusings on the Tucson Citizen website. Another reader has posted this comment: "With 60 grams of sugars in a 12 ounce glass, the shareholders of Bristol-Myers-Squibb and Merck are gonna be in real good shape."

Indignation, frustration. It's all growing stronger amongst diabetics over the fact that most people don't understand this basic fact: type 1 and type 2 diabetes are two very different conditions. When, oh when (or ever?), will we get more appropriate names.

"Type 1" and "type 2" are so meaningless to most non-diabetics and probably to a lot of type 2 diabetics as well. "Juvenile" or "childhood onset" are, these days, likewise, quite meaningless when so many kids are getting T2DM due to atrocious lifestyle/eating habits.

A recent editorial caught my eye. I want to share, because I think it's a good example of how the media helps add to this ignorance when journalists fail to make a distinction between T1 and T2. "In our view: Targeting Diabetes," was published August 16 in The Columbian of Vancouver, WA. "Diabetes is everywhere...Diabetes lasts a lifetime," it reads, "and there is no cure, even though steps involving diet and exercise can lower many risks." Not true! It goes on to say, "With generous gifts and more education, fewer of us will get the disease." Again, not true! You and I know that statement does not apply to T1s. But I'll wager an overwhelming majority of non-diabetic and T2 diabetic readers would not bat an eye at such a comment.

Diabetic and want to help educate people? Long-term, we need new names! Short-term, public education will help. Here's a start: hit the link above to this Columbian editorial and post a comment!

Isn't it amazing that even toddlers can operate computers and cell phones these days? Alex Merriam lives in Pleasanton, Texas. Alex is only two-years-old, but he helped save his dad's life recently. His father, William Merriam, has had type 1 diabetes since he was only four. Last Friday, William's blood sugar got dangerously low and and he fell unconscious in a chair. Alex was the only one in the house with him at the time.

Alex's mom, D'anna, was worried when she kept trying to call her husband. No one answered. In the end, aware that a hypoglycemic episode could have hit William, she had her father try calling too. Eventually, Alex - all of two-years-old, mind you - got the ringing cell phone out of his dad's bag and answered it. He told his grandpa that his dad was "asleep" and then hung up. Kids do the darndest things! The grandfather called back and, yet again, Alex picked up. This time the boy took the phone over to his father and it was clear that dad was not responding at all. Emergency services were alerted and an ambulance arrived not long after that.

After recovering, dad William said "It's nice he doesn't know what's wrong, but knew enough to tell the right person at the right time." Cute story.

A little something in the news the other day caught my eye: schools in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg area of North Carolina have organized an informational meeting especially for families of diabetic pupils. The meeting was titled "Diabetes: Back to School Basics." Reports The Charlotte Observer, the idea is to prepare parents and children for the school-year, looking specifically at how diabetic kids should expect to deal with their condition during school hours, what parents can and cannot expect of school staff and so on.

Also included on the agenda was a chance for parents and kids to work on personalized care plans for while they're at school. The meeting is also a chance for everyone to meet the diabetes nurse who has just joined the Charlotte-Mecklenburg district. The nurse is trained in diabetes management and will be available to help kids and parents with educational materials and resources.

Here's to the powers-that-be at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. You can see there is a problem with so many diabetic kids in your schools, (The Observer says around four hundred kids in that school district are diabetic), and you are tackling it head-on. What I'm not clear on is what the schools' policy is on insulin-dependent type 1 kids who need shots during school hours. This has become so problematic of late, with schools concerned about liability issues in having staff assist with supervising/administering shots. But, nevertheless, this is a sign of the times and a good one. In fact, this is so good I'm wondering...why don't all schools do this?

Speaking of kids with T1DM, (click here for previous kid-related post) I was just browsing around Amazon's selections of books for parents of type 1 children. There are, of course, a bunch of books on the market. Maybe not quite as many as I'd expected though. (Perhaps T1 parents turn to the web for support these days?) Anyway, there were some clear favorites amongst readers. But be prepared. To get to the good stuff, you will have to sift through tons of Diabetes Cured-Overnight!-style "self-help" manuals.

A current bestseller seems to be The Everything Parent's Guide to Children with Juvenile Diabetes by Moira McCarthy and Jake Kushner. Bonus: it's part of the "Everything Guide" series of books, so it's packed with info, yet reasonably priced. A good buy. Having said that, there are tons of other general guides, like this one by physician Ragnar Hanas and this one by Victoria Peurrung.

I'm intrigued by this one: Growing Up with Diabetes: What Children Want their Parents to Know by Alicia McAuliffe. And here's one that got some very positive customer reviews: Real Life Parenting of Kids With Diabetes by Virginia Nasmyth Loy. I'm noticing a few specialty-topics popping up too. Example? Getting the Most out of Diabetes Camp. This book is all about..., um, diabetes camp. (File this book under "For parents who over-prepare!" LOL) Your kids grown up into teens? Never fear, there are books for parents of big kids too.

Best title, hands down? Janette Kirkham's Don't Put Test Strips in Christmas Stockings: And Other Ideas for Parents of Children with Diabetes. This book was published back in 2002 and it looks a little tougher to get a hold of.

Eight-year-old Sam Murray of Massachusetts has become an official face of type 1 diabetes for the Joslin Diabetes Center. Sam and one other child will appear on billboards throughout his home state. The billboards promote diabetes awareness and that ever-critical (yet never-ending!) task, fundraising.

The ad campaign is a year-long endeavor by Joslin, paid for using $500,000-worth of billboard space donated by ClearChannel. In one of the designs, Sam poses with a glucose monitor in his outstretched hand, a chalkboard in the background, with the slogan "Let's erase diabetes from his future."

Sam Murray was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes only last year. His parents say the diagnosis might have taken longer to secure if not for the fact that another local boy had been diagnosed with the disease not so long before, so Sam's mom and dad were already somewhat familiar with the symptoms.

And, no, he's not shy about taking such a public role: "I thought it would be pretty cool to have my picture all over the place," remarks Sam. Says dad Dan, "Sammy from the get-go has really adapted to this much better than we could have possibly imagined. He's kind of taken on this role as ambassador."

Click here to see a Boston Globe photo of the billboard image.

As Bev observed in a post yesterday, California schools will now be required to ensure that diabetic kids get their medical needs met during school hours. Parents are relieved by the settlement, which was reached between the California Department of Education and two school districts (on one side) and four families with diabetic children, working in conjunction with the American Diabetes Association (ADA).

It's a thorny issue. If you require by law that kids be in school during specified hours, you'd better make darn sure you can meet their needs while they're there. As Michelle Ferry, mom of a seven-year-old boy with diabetes, observed "If I had a child in a wheelchair, they wouldn't expect me to come in and take them out of a wheelchair" as necessary throughout the school day. Michelle, you see, was required to drop everything and come running to the school when her son needed a shot because there was no one at the school willing/qualified/permitted to administer it.

While she has a point, you could also argue that helping a (developmentally normal) child in and out of a wheelchair doesn't require special training. Helping a child monitor and adjust his or her blood sugar level most certainly does. Understandably, school administrators were, and remain, concerned about legal liability. Teachers also have a right to be concerned.

Juice manufacturer Old Orchard Brands is expanding its financial support for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF). A press release issued by the company announced intentions to give up to one million dollars in new funding. The company hopes to raise money for the JDRF with its Healthy Balance Challenge, in which twenty cents from each sale of Old Orchard Brands Healthy Balance line of low-sugar fruit juices will be donated to the JDRF.

The JDRF accepted Old Orchard's support last year and, according to Old Orchard, the company has pledged $650,000 worth of cash and product donations through 2009. Money raised through the Healthy Balance Challenge will be in addition to that sum. Arnold Donald, CEO of the JDRF, says partners such as Old Orchard Brands "care deeply about the work we do in researching a cure for type 1 diabetes. They continue to support our organization with innovative retail-driven programs that increase funding for research, and that's a rare and valuable partner to have."

You could also say that every dollar in support for the JDRF equals good publicity and increased sales for Old Orchard. Of course, I would never be so cynical.

A new report says physical activity is critical for kids with type 1 diabetes because it helps prevent heart trouble later in life. The German and Austrian researchers behind the study reached this conclusion after crunching the numbers for more than 23,000 kids between ages three and eighteen, comparing their health with activity levels. As you would expect, the most active kids had the healthiest hearts and lower levels of cholesterol and triglycerides. By comparison, thirty-six percent of children who were active only once or twice a week had high cholesterol and triglycerides.

For type 1 kids, activity levels relate to HbA1c levels: fit children had lower HbA1c levels. High HbA1c levels in childhood practically guarantee your child will experience heart problems down the road. Says lead researcher Antje Herbst: "Clearly, getting off the couch and out of doors, where they can be more physically active, is good for all kids. But for children with type 1 diabetes, the need to stay physically active is even greater due to the increased risk for heart disease."

Parents: you don't have to sign your little ones up for triathlon training, boot camp or anything like that. Vigorous exercise is not necessary to reap the benefits. Regular periods of normal play are adequate. Even half an hour a day can make a difference, the researchers say. Common sense, however, suggests this is a case where more is definitely better.

The results of this study appear in the latest Diabetes Care (August 2007).

As my parents explained it to me, when your child is diagnosed with diabetes you are slapped in the face with a shocking revelation: we can't fix this! However a blessing in disguise was bestowed upon Dylan Fossella, an 11- year-old boy who also happens to be the son of Vito Fossella, a Congressman from Staten Island.

Dylan Fossella, was just five years old when he was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. He will be one of 150 other children and teenagers living with type 1 diabetes from across the country heading to D.C. on behalf of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. They will speak to lawmakers to encourage funding toward a cure. To earn the trip to Washington, he had to write a letter to his local Congressman, who happens to be his dad. The message Dylan most wants his dad and other politicians to hear is the same message I promoted when I visited Washing D.C in the 1990s with the American Diabetes Association: find a cure in my lifetime, please.

Over the years, many people have regarded diabetes as a disease that's manageable. True -- but that's easier said than done. For kids like Dylan that means checking your sugar about four times a day (or more) and upwards of six insulin shots a day. As a personal reflection -- I consider myself lucky to be one of the 13,000 children chosen in 1985 for juvenile diabetes. Here I am 22 years later, blogging on behalf of Dylan. It is my hope that he and his family can make a difference for all of us wishing for that cure. Have a great time in D.C, Dylan. It'll be the memory of a lifetime!

150 children with type 1 diabetes are packing their suitcases and running last-minute errands. The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International's (JDRF) Children's Congress 2007 is only a week away! Representing all 50 states and the District of Columbia, the children, ranging in age from 4 to 17, were selected as delegates for this year's Children's Congress to be held June 17-20, 2007 in DC. Held every two years since 1999, Children's Congress is the largest media and grassroots event held in support of the search for a cure.

Select child delegates and researchers will join JDRF's International Chairman, Mary Tyler Moore, to testify at a Senate hearing. They will ask Congress to support increased overall funding for type 1 diabetes research at the National Institutes of Health. Delegates will also be making Congressional visits.

"Promise to Remember Me" is the children's theme. A raw, honest message to encourage top Congressional lawmakers to remember their struggle and their urgent call for more funding. You bet I promise to remember all the beautiful children dealing courageously with type 1 diabetes. My family will proudly watch for Children's Congress 2007 next week and cheer you on with each beat of our hearts.

Read more about Moore's advocacy for diabetes at this previous post.

The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International (JDRF) was started in 1970 by a group of parents advocating for their children. JDRF has grown into a powerful research and educational force for juvenile diabetes -- nothing short of amazing!

Check out JDRF's Kids Online, a community of kids handling their disease with grace, humor and courage. Kids Online offers a variety of interactive zones to engage youth and teens with juvenile diabetes. Just a sampling, the Your Life link provides tips to manage the disease from a kid's point of view. Don't miss the Your Stuff link boasting an Idea Zone to share artwork and ideas; Kids Say for a give-and-take of opinions; and Pen Pals where kids can forge friendships with other juvenile diabetics across the globe.

Sneak a peek at Kids Online and be inspired by this on-line playground. If you know a child with juvenile diabetes, make sure to send them a hyperlink!

When my older brother Mark was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at the age of 13, I was nine years old. I absorbed the basic science of high and low blood sugars, and how he needed daily insulin to regulate his blood sugar. But little did I expect an awaiting surprise.

One day my mom returned home from grocery shopping and pulled out two giant bags of Jolly Rancher hard candies. I remember the scene clearly. You see, I was a candy addict (still am). Big bags of watermelon Jolly Ranchers had my full attention.

My mom explained how this candy was purchased for Mark, in case he had low blood sugar at school. I nodded my head in full agreement, then began stuffing handfuls of them in my pocket every day or so thereafter. Yet, whenever the bag of Jolly Ranchers was nearly empty, my hand wavered, unable to steal the last candies. Deep inside my sugared-up, pre-adolescent consciousness, I knew better. Jolly Ranchers were my brother's mini-life preservers, just in case he floundered in the seas of low blood sugar.

I marvel at the proactive enthusiasm and extraordinary talent of Kamaal and Malcolm Washington. Kamaal, a type 1 diabetic himself, and his brother have developed comic books that tell the stories of children who learn they have diabetes and find themselves visited by Dr. Diabetes.

The comic book spreads awareness about the disease and empowers those who have it. Their comic books have received awards and taken them around the country to speak about diabetes. Kamaal has served as a Children's Congress delegate for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, joining hundreds of other young diabetics in testifying before the U.S. Senate about diabetes research support. Going forward, Kamaal and Malcolm want to create their own animated series and perhaps produce a movie.

Kamaal and Malcolm are working on their third diabetes-themed comic. The comic book tells the story of a politician who refuses to increase funds to find a cure for diabetes and the heroes' quest to change that. Spreading awareness, empowering those dealing with the disease and calling upon political forces to make it happen - I think Kamaal and Malcolm are wise beyond their years. There's no stopping these guys and I'm thrilled to be the one telling you about them. May your super comic books empower us all to become super diabetic heroes!

It's still going - the TrialNet and the NIH are continuing to recruit patients for their clinical study of oral insulin to slow the onset of type 1 diabetes.

In the study, researchers are testing whether an insulin capsule taken by mouth once a day can prevent or delay diabetes in individuals at high risk for developing type 1 diabetes. An earlier trial suggested that oral insulin might delay type 1 diabetes for about four years. This was found to be true in people with autoantibodies to insulin in their blood. Some scientists think that introducing insulin via the digestive tract induces tolerance of the immune system. Insulin taken orally has no effect on glucose because the digestive system breaks it down quickly. To lower blood glucose, insulin must be injected or administered by an insulin pump.

In type 1 diabetes, a person's own immune cells destroy the beta cells of the pancreas. Beta cells sense blood glucose and produce the hormone insulin, which regulates glucose and converts it to energy. The autoantibodies causing type 1 diabtes may appear in the blood up to 10 years before diagnosis. These autoantibodies to glutamate decarboxylase (GAD), IA-2, and to insulin itself indicate a greater risk for developing type 1 diabetes. For a person with high-risk genes and all three antibodies, the risk of developing diabetes in the next 5 years is greater than 50%.