Now before I start this post please remember that it is MY opinion and I know there will be others with differing points of view.
I saw a commercial the other week that was put out by the Texas Department of Health about breastfeeding. They are trying to promote breastfeeding and all the pluses that come from it. There are so many good things about breastfeeding a baby...God made it that way for a reason. We all also know that there are reasons why women can't nurse. So I am not disputing the fact that nursing is a wonderful thing. All three of my babies were nursed. All three were nursed for different amounts of time for different reasons. We did what worked for us.
What ruffled my feathers about the ad was the comment about reducing your child's risk for diabetes. Now my first thought is that they are talking about type 2 and would they please clarify that on the ad. Now this has become one of my missions as a mom of a kid with type 1 diabetes....to please not lump the two types together. The best way I know to do this is contact the sources of these ads/articles when I see them. So that's what I did. I sent a little email that has sort of become my standard. I explain why I see it as a problem and ask that they consider my point of view for future ads/articles.
Well they wrote me back.
According to the email I received they are INCLUDING type 1 diabetes in their statistics. The lady goes on to inform me that they understand that type 1 is a mixture of genetics, environmental factors, and bad luck. Ok, so what are you considering a "breastfed baby"? And how with all the unknowns about type 1 can you safely say that if a child had been nursed for as long as you considered them to be a "breastfed baby" they would not have developed type 1 diabetes?
BAD LUCK?!
Sorry Clay....we must have forgotten your lucky rabbits foot that day in June. We will make sure to carry it from now on....
So again to remind everyone who is still reading this post....
There is no cure for type 1 diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disorder...type 2 is not.
Genetics is a part of the cause....for some people. Autoimmune disorders run in my side of the family. I have one, my mom has one, an aunt had one.
An environmental factor is what is believed to be the trigger that causes the body's white blood cells to attack the insulin producing "beta cells" in the pancreas. An environmental factor can be a virus which is what we believe happened to Clay. This seems to be the leading theory from the medical community right now.
Here is where it starts getting fun though...because you throw out words like "environment factor" and people start grabbing for things. We have heard it was caused by vaccines, by baby bottles, by living in too clean of an environment, by the fact that I had a c-section. And the list goes on.
The thing is for every type 1 child I know that was never nursed I've met one who has never touched a plastic baby bottle. For every child born from a c-section I know a type 1 child born with no drugs...all natural. I can bet you that my house is not a sterile environment. And I vaccinate my children, but I know type 1's who have never had a vaccine.
The fact is they DON'T know. This is why Josh and I are so passionate about fundraising for research. The sooner we find out, the sooner we find a cure.
The problem, for me, with this ad was that it used a "we aren't sure" statistic to promote breastfeeding. I know this is marketing...but that doesn't mean I have to like it. As a parent with a child with this disease you go over everything in your mind. There is so much potential for guilt to set in and this ad looked to me like it was promoting that.
So there may be a day they come out and say we think "such and such" is the factor for type 1 diabetes. It may be a choice I made: like only nursing Clay for about 8 weeks and pumping the rest of the time, or by having the cord wrapped around his neck at birth, or maybe a vaccine triggered it. Whatever the reason I have to hold on to the fact that I love my son and have made choices that I thought were the best for him. God gave him to me because he feels like I'm the best mommy for him...that I DO know for a fact!!
Ok, you are educating me every time I read this. First, I don't know the beginnings of anything when it comes to diabetes, other than the body doesn't make insulin or regulate it. You MAKE me pay attention, and I am glad that I do.
ReplyDeleteSecond, as crazy as this may sound, I do fell like Clay was called to this, as well as you and Josh. He is a different kid and I have seen first hand the impact he has made on kids his age about diabetes and how NOT to be afraid of it.
Keep sending your emails. They may not listen today, but eventually something may change.