Encyclopedia of Child Behavior and Development

2011 Edition
| Editors: Sam Goldstein, Jack A. Naglieri

Diabetes

  • Eva Benmeleh
Reference work entry
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-79061-9_842

Synonyms

Definition

Diabetes is a chronic disorder of metabolism that causes the body to improperly use the energy or glucose it receives from food.

Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus is a disease in which the pancreas does not produce sufficient amounts of insulin.

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus occurs when the body fails to respond appropriately to insulin.

Description

Diabetes is a chronic disorder of metabolism that causes the body to improperly use the energy or glucose it receives from food. It is caused by an inadequate production of insulin, which regulates the metabolism of carbohydrates.

Insulin is produced in the beta cells of the pancreatic islets of Langerhans. Damage to the beta cells results in lowered or a complete lack of production of insulin.

Type 1 Diabetes or insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus, is a common, chronic illness in childhood affecting 0.2% of school-age children under the age of 20 [6]....

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References

  1. 1.
    American Diabetes Association. (n.d.). Retrieved September 23, 2007, from http://www.diabetes.org/type-1-diabetes/treatment-conditions.jsp
  2. 2.
    Brannon, L., & Feist, J. (2007a). Living with chronic illness. In M. Sordi & J. Alexander (Eds.), Health psychology: An introduction to behavior and health (pp. 274–304). Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.Google Scholar
  3. 3.
    Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2007). 2007 National diabetes fact sheet. Retrieved July 8, 2008, from http://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/pubs/estimates07.htm#3
  4. 4.
    Gonder-Frederick, L. A., Cox, D. J., & Ritterband, L. M. (2002). Diabetes and behavioral medicine: The second decade. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 70, 611–625.PubMedGoogle Scholar
  5. 5.
    Hampson, S. E., Skinner, T. C., Hart, J., Storey, L., Gage, H., Foxcroft, D., et al. (2001). Effects of educational and psychosocial interventions for adolescents with diabetes mellitus: A systematic review. Health Technology Assessment, 5, 1–79. Retrieved September 23, 2007, from http://www.hta.ac.uk/execsumm/summ510.htm
  6. 6.
    National Diabetes Education Program. (2008). Overview of diabetes in children and adolescents. Retrieved September 29, 2008, from http://ndep.nih.gov/diabetes/youth/youth_FS.htm#Statistics

Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2011

Authors and Affiliations

  • Eva Benmeleh
    • 1
  1. 1.Center for Psychological StudiesNova Southeastern UniversityFt. LauderdaleUSA