Experts are warning against feeding children “very sweet processed foods” after the country has recently seen an unusual and worrying trend in type 2 diabetes among children. The increase in such cases is believed to be due to obesity caused by lifestyle and diet. So what can parents do to make sure their kids don’t stray too far from it?
“In most cases, children report obesity as the underlying problem and are often diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in the process. If both parents have diabetes, the child is 10 years older than the age at which diabetes occurs. ~15 years earlier.” Parents understood that,” explains Dr. Akanksha Parikh, a pediatric endocrinologist at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital.
Until recently, children were only diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. In type 1 diabetes, the pancreas does not produce insulin (a hormone that helps cells absorb glucose from the blood) because the immune system attacks insulin-producing islet cells in the pancreas. In type 2 diabetes, on the other hand, the pancreas produces less insulin.
In some cases, parents may be shocked to learn that their child has diabetes, especially if there is no history of diabetes in the family. Doctors in India’s major cities agree that type 2 diabetes is on the rise among children under 18, and children around puberty are particularly at risk of developing glucose intolerance.
“Weight gain is the main reason why children develop type 2 diabetes,” says Dr. Brij Makkar, president of Diabetes Research Society of India and obesity expert. “We see children with type 2 diabetes almost every week. Children between the ages of 10 and 12 first enter a prediabetic stage and eventually become diabetic after a few years. Their HbA1c levels are not very high. However, the blood sugar level is abnormal, with the fasting blood sugar level being in the normal range of 126 or higher, and the postprandial (postprandial) blood sugar level reaching over 200.
Type 2 diabetes progresses more rapidly and aggressively in children than in adults, and symptoms begin to appear earlier than in adults. ” he added. “Four to five years ago, most children with diabetes had type 1 or pancreatic disease, which damages the pancreas and affects its ability to produce insulin,” says a consultant endocrinologist at KMC Hospital, Mangaluru. Dr. Srinath Shetty says: This increase started to be seen in people under 40 just before COVID-19. ”
Dr. Sreejith Kumar, who runs a diabetes care center in Thiruvananthapuram, sees young patients with acanthosis nigricans, an abnormal darkening of the skin around the nape of the neck that is the most common sign of insulin resistance. He says that he is seeing an increasing number of cases. “Many parents mistake this for dirt, but in obese children it can be a sign of diabetes,” Kumar says.
Experts say children should get 45 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity each day. “This means you’ll be sweating, your heart rate will increase, and you’ll be out of breath during exercise,” says Shetty. “If these three things happen at the same time for five days, you can say you had enough physical activity.”
