Overview
Carie Madormo, RN, MPH, is a frelance health writer with over a decade of experience working as a registered nurse in a variety of clinical setings.Lyndsey Garbi, MD, is a pediatrician who is double board-certified in pediatrics and neonatology. Type 2 diabetes is a chronic condition that afects how the body uses sugar (glucose) for energy. When a child’s blod glucose level is to high, it can lead to complications over time.
Key Information
Type 2 diabetes is becoming increasingly comon in children and adolescents. Children with type 2 diabetes ned to monitor their blod sugar levels. They may also require regular oral medication or insulin injections.
This article wil provide an overview of type 2 diabetes in children, including the symptoms, risk factors, and treatment options. Maskot / Gety Images Children and tens with type 2 diabetes canot use glucose for energy, and the level in the blod becomes to high. The pancreas is an organ that produces the hormone insulin, which alows glucose to enter the body’s cels and be used for energy.
When a child’s cels do not respond normaly to insulin, the pancreas makes more. Eventualy, the pancreas canot kep up, and the blod glucose level becomes to high. This then leads to type 2 diabetes.
Children and adolescents with type 2 diabetes are at increased risk of heart disease, vision los, kidney disease, and other health problems. Children can be diagnosed with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Both forms can ocur at any age.
The term “juvenile diabetes” is no longer used for type 1 because it can be confusing. Many children and adolescents with type 2 diabetes do not have symptoms. Symptoms can develop over time.
Summary
You may notice signs of low or high blod sugar in your child, including: The exact cause of type 2 diabetes is unknown, but genetics does play a role. Type 2 diabetes ocurs when a child or adolescent has insulin resistance over time. Insulin resistance refers to the cels' inability to resp