Diabetes and Learning Diabetes is a chronic disease, which induces learning disabilities and cognitive disorders. Proactive care and Symptomatic management are critical aspects of diabetes control. Successful intervention involves a collaborative effort on the part of the school staff, parents and health care providers.

Diabetes is a serious health concern for the United States with more than 18.2 million people affected by the disease. The prevalence of Diabetes among children is alarming, as every year more than 13000 are being diagnosed with type-1 diabetes and even more unusual is the increasing incidence of type-2 diabetes[American Diabetes Association]. Studies have indicated that cognitive skills may be severely impaired if diabetes is not properly treated. Left unattended extreme cases of hypoglycemia may even result in severe complications such as seizures or coma. Understanding the effect of diabetes in the learning process is important in our efforts to provide optimal learning ability for the affected children. Let us have a brief study of diabetes in children, its effect on the learning process, and also discuss successful preventive interventions.

Diabetes

Diabetes is a condition in which the body is either unable to produce or utilize insulin, a hormone necessary for the conversion of glucose, starch and other forms of food material into energy. In a normal person the body is able to produce enough insulin to convert glucose into energy. In a diabetic however, there is a high level of glucose in the bloodstream, which is finally excreted in the urine. In this way diabetics waste away (glucose) the main source of fuel for the body. The WHO classifies diabetes into five general types namely insulin dependent (IDDM), non-insulin dependent (NIDDM), other types, gestational and malnutrition related diabetes. Of these IDDM or...

[Mayer B. Davidson, 5]
Type -1 diabetes refers to case where the body is unable to produce insulin, which is required for transporting the glucose in the bloodstream into the cells. This condition is more common with children and young adults. Type -1 patients exhibit ketosis, a condition where there is a high level of acidic ketones in their blood. This results because the body uses fats as the alternative source of energy and ketones are formed as the end product. [NHS Online Health Encyclopedia] For type -1 patients intervention in the form of insulin therapy is a must as otherwise they run the risk of diabetic ketoacidosis which is fatal. Hyperglycemia (high glucose in blood), Hypoglycemia (low glucose in blood), celiac disease, etc. are some of the other associated disease conditions.

Type-2 diabetes or non-insulin dependent diabetes is an important type, which is characterized by the absence of ketosis. In these patients there are no ketone bodies in the urine, which is proof enough that the body produces some amount of insulin. Though type-2 diabetes is called insulin independent diabetes as much as 25% of this group require insulin therapy. This form of diabetes is more common with the elderly population and around 80 to 90% of patients are obese. So physicians consider obesity as an important risk factor for type-2 diabetes. [Mayor B. Davidson, 5]

Diabetes and Effect on Students

Diabetic children need special care and attention at school. Brain function is important for any learning activity. Since diabetes directly affects the functioning of the brain it may cause severe learning limitations. The normal blood glucose level is approximately 3.8 to 8.0 mmol/L. However in a diabetic glucose levels either increase steeply (hyperglycemia) or fall as low as