There are 2.9 million people diagnosed with diabetes in the UK, and the number is growing. Leading health charity, Diabetes UK, tells us all about the disease and how they help those affected.

What is diabetes? 

People with diabetes don’t look any different, but their bodies work in a different way to most people. Diabetes is a condition in which the amount of glucose (sugar) in the blood is too high and the body can’t use it properly. That’s because the body’s way of converting glucose into energy – to play, exercise and move around – isn’t working as it should be. Instead of being turned into energy, the glucose stays in the body and this makes a person with diabetes feel tired and unwell.

This happens because the body isn’t making enough insulin – or it’s not making insulin at all – which is needed for the glucose to be used properly. If the body can’t make enough insulin naturally, scientists can make insulin for people with diabetes to use. It’s a medicine that they can take every day to stay well.

When was insulin introduced?

Leonard Thompson was 14 years old when he was given insulin to control his diabetes. It was exactly 90 years ago in Canada and it was the first time that insulin worked at making someone with diabetes healthy. Leonard was already very ill but, once he started using insulin, he got much better. It was a scientific breakthrough for Frederick Banting who, along with his assistant Charles Best, had discovered insulin and worked out how it could help save the lives of people with diabetes. Between now and then, more than a million people with diabetes have used insulin all around the world.

What are the different types of insulin? 

There are several different types of insulin and different ways to take it. When insulin was first used, people like Leonard Thompson had to inject the medicine with a glass syringe and steel needle. Because the needle had to be used over and over again it soon became blunt. Since then, there have been lots of changes and now most people inject their insulin with a pen injector – which can look just like a normal pen but acts like a syringe and has a very small and thin needle – or they use an insulin pump.

Insulin pumps are about the size of a mobile phone. Insulin goes inside the pump and then comes out of the pump through a small plastic tube into a smaller tube called a cannula. The cannula sits under the skin, usually in the tummy. The pump pushes insulin through the tubes into the body little by little. After eating, extra insulin can be pumped into the body by pressing buttons on the pump. How much extra insulin is needed depends on what a person has eaten.

Not everybody can use an insulin pump and a doctor or nurse are able to help each person decide which is the best way to take insulin. Different people also use different insulins, and take it at different times. A doctor or nurse will help in deciding which insulin is better and when to take it. Some people with diabetes take more insulin than others. There are also different types of insulin – some work quickly (called fast or rapid-acting) and these are usually taken just before a meal or if the blood glucose is high. Insulins that work more slowly (called long-acting) are taken once or twice a day. Some people with diabetes take insulin that is a mixture of these and it is injected before breakfast and before dinner.

Niamh’s story

Niamh Bridger is nine and she’s been using an insulin pump for nearly four years. She said: “Because I use a continuous glucose monitor with my pump I always know what is going on with my blood sugar levels, which helps my diabetes. My insulin pump is an amazingly clever thing and using it means I still do everything that I want to – including swimming, cycling, trampolining and dancing.”

Niamh thinks it’s important that her friends know all about diabetes and insulin. She said: “Having diabetes makes me feel different from my friends but they make me feel safe and cared for. They know about diabetes and they always help look after me.”

Niamh’s mum has written a children’s book titled Why Can’t I Fly, and she is kindly using some of the book sales to raise funds for Diabetes UK, a leading health charity.

What is Diabetes UK? 

Diabetes UK is the biggest organisation in the UK working for people with diabetes. It campaigns for better care and funds research into the treatment of diabetes and to find a cure. Diabetes UK also gives practical information to help people look after their diabetes better.

Words by Diabetes UK, on the 90th anniversary of the first use of insulin.