14 DAY TRIAL // Speaking at this year's meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes in Stockholm, a team of specialists led by University of Texas researcher Michael Yafi described the case of a girl who was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes while still a baby.
Thus, it was when she was merely 3 years old that medical experts found that the girl was suffering from this condition. By all accounts, this girl might be the youngest type 2 diabetes patient on record.
Her family's diet wasn't quite right
As detailed by specialist Michael Yafi, the girl was born full term. At birth, she tipped the scale at around 3.2 kilograms (7 pounds). In time, however, she began to put on weight.
By the time she turned 3, she weighed some 35 kilograms (77 pounds), about twice as much as other children her age. She would urinate frequently and was thirsty all the time, and so her mother brought her to see a doctor.
Having carried out a series of tests, medical experts concluded that she had type 2 diabetes. “Based on symptoms, physical findings of obesity and laboratory results, the diagnosis of type 2 diabetes was made,” said Michael Yafi.
Apparently, the girl was born perfectly healthy. She became obese and ended up developing type 2 diabetes because her family's diet was rather poor. They would eat copious amounts of fatty foods and didn't count calories.
“A review of the child's diet revealed poor family nutritional habits with uncontrolled counting of calories and fat,” Science Daily informs.
Luckily, doctors managed to help her
To address her condition, medical experts had the girl take a liquid version of a diabetes drug called metformin on a daily basis. They also spoke to her family and told them that they needed to closely watch over the girl and control her food portions.
Over the course of about 6 months, the girl lost a quarter of her initial weight and her blood glucose levels returned to normal. This meant there was no longer any need for her to keep taking metformin.
All the same, her family were asked to make sure that she would keep losing weight and that she would not return to her previous poor eating habits. Otherwise, the condition could come back.
As more and more children grow to become obese, so is the incidence of type 2 diabetes on the rise among the young population. If the condition is diagnosed early and the children receive proper therapy, they can be saved.