Support Group Seeks Parents of Diabetics

The local chapter of the American Diabetes Assn. is looking for parents of young children with diabetes who are interested in starting a new support group.

Although two support groups already exist for adults with the disease, the association found itself unable to help the parent of an 8-year-old who had contracted the illness, said the association’s Lenore Gabel.

The group is being formed at the request of Mary Lynn Evans, who recently learned that her child has diabetes.

“I wanted to meet other parents who would understand what I was going through and wanted my child to know other children with diabetes,” Evans said.

“What I discovered was that they were not easy for me to find.”

More than 14 million people in the United States have diabetes, and 150,000 die of diabetes complications every year, Gabel said.

In Ventura County, more than 60,000 people have the disease, of which about 10% rely on daily injections of insulin to control their blood sugar levels and stay alive.

Parents of children with diabetes, from infancy to 12 years old, are invited to join other parents and children to air concerns, plan outings, receive education and discuss ways of dealing with diabetes as the parent or child.

For further information, call the association at 987-1323.