Diabetes in Young Children

By Ifeoma Ezeani

It is a common belief that diabetes is a disease only found in older adults, mainly because television shows, movies, books and the media in general portray adults as the main individuals who struggle with the disease. But in reality, diabetes is a disease that affects people of different ages, race, height, weight, etc.

Black children are particularly susceptible, the most likely to die from diabetes compared to any other race or ethnicity.

“During 2012–2014, the highest diabetes death rates in this age group (2.04 per 1 million
population) was among blacks, and the lowest was among Hispanics (0.61); death rates among whites were intermediate between blacks and Hispanics (0.92),” according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control.

—