Diabetes is a condition which can affect the young as well as people of all ages.

That is why the first Sneaker Stroll is scheduled for Saturday at the Riverside Park Nature Trail, with registration beginning at 9 a.m.

The walk begins at 10 a.m., and all proceeds will go to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research. Diabetes is an autoimmune disease that can strike children and adults suddenly, and can be fatal.

Until a cure is found, many people with diabetes have to test their blood sugar and give themselves insulin injections multiple times or use a pump — each day, every day of their lives. and even with that intensive care, insulin is not a cure for diabetes, nor does it prevent its potential complications, which may include kidney failure, blindness, heart disease, stroke and amputation.

The symptoms of juvenile diabetes, which can come as Type 1 diabetes or Type 2 diabetes, are extremely similar, but the two kinds are caused by very different bodily malfunctions. It is important to know which type the individual is afflicted with in order to provide the right treatment, which also varies between types.

Juvenile diabetes is somehow triggered to attack innocent, insulin-producing cells in the pancreas called beta cells. (Medical professionals suspect the triggers may be hereditary or environmental, but have no conclusive evidence.) Juvenile diabetes is almost always first diagnosed in children, teenagers or young adults.

A person with juvenile diabetes has the right amount of glucose, the body’s main fuel, in his system, but lacks insulin, which carries glucose throughout the bloodstream. Without insulin, the body cannot be fueled, and essentially begins to waste away.

If your child has diabetes, he or she may display a host of tell-tale symptoms. one of the most noticeable juvenile diabetes symptoms is increased urination. the body is still producing glucose, but since insulin isn’t transporting the glucose to the appropriate cells, it amasses. the kidneys attempt to resolve the problem by getting rid of the extra sugar the glucose build-up leaves, which causes frequent urges to urinate.

Increased thirst is another important symptom that parents usually assume accounts for their child’s increased urination. unfortunately, the real explanation for their child’s sudden inability to drink enough is the fact that he or she is constantly letting anything he drinks out of his body via urination.

Children with juvenile diabetes are often constantly hungry no matter how much they eat, since without insulin to carry their body’s fuel source, glucose, they are technically never actually fed.

Another telling symptom of juvenile diabetes is significant weight loss. Since people with Type 2 diabetes tend to be overweight, diabetes is usually associated with weight gain, but with Type 1 diabetes, circumstances are just the opposite. the child in question is not receiving any fuel in the form of glucose, so the body has nothing to create fat from. His appetite increases monstrously, but his weight drops at an entirely disproportionate rate — distinct potential warning signs of Type 1 diabetes.

Other symptoms logically stemming from those listed above but not necessarily present in children with juvenile diabetes include fatigue, dizziness, headache, nausea, vomiting, confusion, a peculiar fruity type of odor in the breath, absence of menstruation in girls and bed-wetting. Parents should be especially concerned when children who normally don’t wet the bed at all begin to do so quite frequently.

Juvenile diabetes is a very serious, chronic disease that must be treated immediately. Experts say not try to excuse frequent thirst and hunger as the natural cravings of a growing child, especially when paired with any of the above symptoms.

The onset of juvenile diabetes can be extremely fast, and can be deadly, so the instant parents suspect something is amiss with a child, get him or her screened by a professional and, if needed, properly treated without delay.

For more information or to donate call Cara Draegert at 970-380-2272 or Kate Jilek at 970-467-1199 or Teresa Dabbs at 970-590-6017.

– Contact Dan Barker at .

Little 8-year-old Eden Perry wants to be a rock star when she grows up, although she’s not a fan of being the center of attention.

She’s shy around people she doesn’t know and speaks softly with an Australian accent. When she gets nervous, she’ll bury her head into her dad, Mike Perry. sometimes she gets unwanted attention in public, like when her family eats at a restaurant and she pulls a syringe out of the kit she carries with her everywhere she goes.

“When I tell people that I have diabetes, they look at me weird,” Eden says.

But the second grader at Dry Creek Elementary School has not shied away from using her story to bring awareness to juvenile diabetes — a chronic, autoimmune disease with no cure. With the help of her graphic designer dad, Eden launched a website called “Eden’s Effort” to raise funds for Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund International.

About 25.8 million kids and adults in the United States have diabetes, including type 1 and — the far more common — type 2, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That’s 8.3 percent of the population. each year, about 15,000 children are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, or roughly 40 children every day.

Eden’s website has raised $7,000 since launching in January, with a last-minute anonymous $900 donation that helped her reach this goal. Her classmates also helped, giving her $51.86. both sets of grandparents donated $1,000.

Eden finished the fundraiser Feb. 5 with a flourish, by chopping off 12 inches of her wavy brown hair for Locks of Love, a nonprofit organization that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children under age 18 suffering from long-term medical hair loss.

But Eden’s Effort will keep accepting money to go toward finding a cure for diabetes.

The idea for the website stemmed from a family movie night in November when the Perrys watched “Pay it forward,” which chronicles a young boy’s attempt to make the world a better place by passing on good deeds.

Eden’s good deeds have already helped at least one family who, through her website, recognized the warning signs for diabetes and had their daughter tested — the results returned positive.

Jaedyn Jurtensen, 9, is best friends with Eden’s 10-year-old sister Alyssa, and has checked out the website.

“When you go on her website and read her story, it’s so sad,” Jaedyn says. “you feel really bad.”

The Perry family had lived in Australia for eight years before moving to Roseville in January 2010 to be closer to relatives. During a camping trip in Napa over the summer, to celebrate Alyssa’s birthday, Eden drank water nonstop and kept using the toilet. Then, as Heather Perry applied sunscreen to her daughter, she noticed she felt skinny.

Back in Australia the Perrys had a friend whose child had diabetes, so they knew the warning signs, which include extreme thirst, frequent urination and sudden weight loss.

If undetected, diabetes can pose serious health threats to sufferers. Type 1 diabetes can easily be mistaken for more common illnesses, such as influenza, which is why recognizing symptoms can save a life.

Eden’s parents took her to a medical clinic but doctors there didn’t have the ability to test for diabetes. So they went to an emergency room where doctors diagnosed her with diabetes. she spent three days in a hospital. Her pancreas had stopped working and her body could no longer produce insulin.

“I was really scared for her,” Alyssa says, during a break from running around the house with Jaedyn.

A healthy pancreas produces insulin, a hormone that changes glucose in the blood into energy. this glucose comes from the food and drink a person consumes. a person with type 1 diabetes doesn’t produce insulin. Without insulin, glucose builds up in the blood, causing high blood sugar, or hyperglycemia, which can lead to ketoacidosis, coma and death.

People with diabetes control the disease through diet, exercise and insulin. Eden needs at least four shots of insulin injected into her blood stream each day to stay alive.

“When we found out she had diabetes, we were devastated,” Mike Perry says. “but she’s been fantastic.”

His daughter must carry a medical kit everywhere she goes — school, grocery stores, playgrounds — that includes a bottle of insulin, syringes and other equipment. For instance, if Eden passes out from low blood glucose levels, someone can administer a shot of sugar using a tool in the kit.

Eden’s levels have to be tested five times a day — at breakfast, lunch, when she gets home from school, dinner and before bed. at school, the nurse tests her and then calls her dad with the results and together they decide what insulin amount Eden needs. There’s no perfect equation for this.

The Perrys monitor the food their daughter eats to make sure she avoids carbohydrates, such as breads, cereals, pasta and items with lots of sugar, such as juice. she snacks a lot throughout the day, munching on cheese sticks, Slim Jims, Pringles Stix and Jelly Belly fruit snacks. The hardest thing, says her dad, is when a kid brings cupcakes to school and she can’t have one.

Otherwise, Eden is like any other precocious and fun-loving kid.

“It hasn’t really stopped me from doing things,” Eden says.

She still draws and paints — she loves art — and plays basketball, baseball and tetherball. plus, her dad says she’s “really good at watching TV,” especially episodes of “Hannah Montana” and “Good Luck Charlie.”

“She’s been so strong, you can’t help but be strong,” Mike Perry says. “She’s just awesome. she just goes with the flow.”

Sena Christian can be reached at senac@goldcountrymedia.com.———-Warning signs of type 1 diabetes· Extreme thirst · Frequent urination · Sudden vision changes · Sugar in urine · Fruity, sweet, or wine-like odor on breath· Increased appetite · Sudden weight loss · Drowsiness, lethargy · Heavy, labored breathing · Stupor, unconsciousnessSource: Juvenile Diabetes Research Fund International

Published: February 5, 2011

TAMPA – Konner Brewer has nearly equaled the number of times she’s broken a bone as years she’s been on this Earth. The 14-year-old has broken 11 bones from participating in everything from snowboarding to rock climbing.

“I think I have the record at school for most broken bones,” the Academy of the Holy Names eighth grader says proudly. “There was a girl with seven, but I beat her. The doctors all know me. They say, ‘back again?’ “

Her doctor visits increased three years ago, but it had nothing to do with broken bones.

The bundle of energy, with a braces-filled mouth almost always curved up in a smile suddenly felt weak and frail. a Type 1 diabetes diagnosis would jar the Brewer family and thrust them into the unknown world of blood sugar checks and insulin injections.

According to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, about 26 million Americans have diabetes. About 10 percent of those have Konner’s kind — Type 1, which develops when the body’s immune system destroys pancreatic cells that make the hormone insulin that regulates blood glucose.

Konner, who hasn’t met a sport she didn’t like, takes comfort in the fact Type 1 diabetes hasn’t slowed down some famous athletes, such as quarterback Jay Cutler, Olympic gold medal swimmer Gary Hall Jr. and NBA player Chris Dudley.

Konner has always been a water drinker. But her mom thought the gallon-a-day habit she developed three years ago was a bit much.

“I called the doctor about three times over the course of three months and they kept saying, ‘she’s fine,’ ” Karla Brewer said. “They kept saying that it’s Florida and she’s athletic, so I let it go.”

The mood swings, though, were atypical of Konner’s happy-go-lucky personality.

“I’d be happy, then I’d get sad, then I’d be crying,” she said. “I didn’t know why.”

Later, she would discover the excessive water drinking and mood swings are classic diabetes symptoms. And those symptoms would culminate in finally getting properly diagnosed after a family trip to New York for Konner’s younger brother’s birthday.

“By the end of the trip, she got so lethargic, her father had to carry her,” her mom said.

They returned home on a Sunday and Konner’s uncle, Kevin, a firefighter, suggested a blood test at his station. The result prompted an immediate trip to the emergency room.

“It was around 900,” Karla Brewer said. “They didn’t know how she wasn’t in a diabetic coma.”

Konner spent five days at Tampa General, a couple of blocks from her Davis Islands home. Anger, worry, helplessness all set in, with everyone but Konner.

Within hours of arriving home after her hospital stay, Konner was wakeboarding at a nearby lake.

“I was calling her doctor and telling him she’s still frail,” Karla Brewer said. “He told me to leave her alone, that she had the best attitude. he wished everyone could have her attitude. She’s like, it’s there, let’s deal with it and move on.”

Konner’s daily routine involves several blood checks. she wakes up and before breakfast, checks her blood sugar, then in an hour or two she checks it again. she checks it again before and after lunch and before and after dinner.

During her various sporting events, Konner checks before and halfway through games or practices to make sure it’s OK.

“If my blood sugar is too low, I’ll have to sit out for a while and eat something and wait for it to come back up,” she said. “But once it’s up, I go back in.”

Konner’s attitude toward her ailment has helped set the tone for the family. she doesn’t wallow in self pity.

“As soon as I heard I could participate in all my sports, I was good,” Konner said.

“I’m the wreck,” her mother said.

Karla Brewer didn’t want to hover, and she didn’t have to. she educated all of Konner’s teachers, handing out diabetes brochures, but has not once come to the school to check her daughter’s blood.

“From the moment she went back to school after the diagnosis, she checks her blood in class,” Karla Brewer said. “She does it all on her own.”

Her teammates chip in when needed. at the state swimming meet in November, Konner enlisted the help of other Jaguars swimmers.

Wanting to be more “aerodynamic” in the water and not risk anything slowing her down, Konner removed her insulin pump, an injection device that delivers necessary doses through a tube attached to a needle in her skin, and went back to shot injections.

“My friends would take shifts and they would help give me my shot,” Konner said.

As the youngest athlete in the pool at the Class 2A state swimming meet in November, Konner swam the third leg of the gold medal-winning 200-freestyle relay team.

Swimming was going to be just another notch on her sports belt, but a funny thing happened on the way to trying out a new activity. Konner found she was really good at it.

“I was at the school for soccer during the summer and it was really hot outside, so I thought next time I’ll bring a bathing suit and cool off and jump in the pool,” Konner said. “That’s when coach saw me.”

Two years later, Konner stood atop a podium at the state swimming championships with a gold medal around her neck.

“The medal ceremony was so exciting,” Konner said. “They finally had to tell us to get off the podium because we were up there for so long.”

* * * * *There is one activity Konner desperately wants to try but her doctor told her no.

“I want to scuba dive, but my doctor said I can’t check my blood sugar under the water,” she said. “I have to wait until I’m older and have somebody that can go with me that knows what they’re doing. That’s the one thing I have to wait on. Other than that …”

She’s game for anything. It’s that attitude Konner wants to share with others diagnosed with the same disease, especially kids her age.

“They can do anything,” Konner said. “Diabetes doesn’t have to stop them. They just need to manage it and check their blood sugar while they’re doing the activity. It’s fine.”

In addition to swimming and playing on the middle school soccer team at Academy of the Holy Names, Konner’s going to give softball and track a try this spring.

Konner’s a typical teenager who happens to suffer from an atypical affliction. she and her best friend Maddy Babin do the usual teenager activities, like going to the movies and hanging out at the mall.

Babin didn’t know much about diabetes before, but she’s full of knowledge now.

“It was kind of scary watching it at first, like I couldn’t imagine having to go through that,” Babin said. “But she’s so good about it. It’s not a big deal for her. she hasn’t slowed down at all, but knowing Konner, I’m not very surprised.

“Nothing’s going to slow her down. It hasn’t yet and I don’t think anything ever will.”

A couple of years ago, Konner participated in the school talent show. Sporting a cast on her broken ankle (No. 11), she hopped on her favorite pogo stick while catching a baseball a friend tossed to her.

She received a standing ovation.

“Konner’s just that kind of individual, she’ll try anything,” Karla Brewer said. “As a parent, there’s certain things I’ve instilled in her, but that’s something that some kids are born with and she’s got it. I’m looking forward to seeing what she does with the rest of her life because it’s going to be amazing.”