Type 2 diabetes in children is becoming increasingly common. Type 2 diabetes was once a disease only in adults. Many researchers believe the increase of type 2 diabetes in children is due largely by the current obesity epidemic. In this article, you will read what the symptoms and causes of type 2 diabetes in children are.

When a child’s body becomes resistant to the effects of insulin Type 2 diabetes develops. Insulin is a hormone that regulates the absorption of sugar into cells. Type 2 diabetes can also occur when a child’s pancreas produces some insulin, but not enough, to maintain a normal blood sugar level.

There is no cure for type 2 diabetes in children. The best you can do is to help your child manage the disease or prevent the disease from ever occurring. Ways to manage and prevent type 2 diabetes in children include:

• Encouraging your child to eat healthy foods
• Encouraging your child to get plenty of physical activity
• Maintaining a healthy weight

When diet and exercise are not enough for the management of type 2 diabetes in children, oral medication or insulin treatment to manage the blood sugar is often prescribed.

Some children with type 2 diabetes have no symptoms. The disease develops gradually in children. Common symptoms of type 2 diabetes in children include:

• Increased thirst and frequent urination
• Extreme hunger
• Weight loss
• Fatigue
• Blurred vision
• Slow-healing sores or frequent infections
• Some children may have patches of dark, velvety skin in folds and creases of the body, usually the armpits and neck. This condition is called acanthosis nigricans and may be a sign of insulin resistance.

What are the causes of type 2 diabetes? Type 2 diabetes develops when the process of glucose entering body cells with the help of insulin works improperly. Instead of sugar entering into body cells, the sugar builds up in the bloodstream. This happens when the pancreas does not make enough insulin or body cells become resistant to the action of insulin. It is uncertain exactly why this process sometimes works improperly, although excess weight and inactivity seem to be very key factors that contribute to the body’s inappropriate processing of sugar, which can lead to type 2 diabetes in children just the same as it does in adults.

By Connie Limon

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