Day at the movies

Rachel Lamke says she’s used to her classmates' questions about why her mother or father has to come to school every day.

Four years ago doctors diagnosed Rachel, now eight-years-old, with Type 1 diabetes. Since then her life has changed a bit. Rachel’s mother, Liz, said she and her husband, Rob, have to monitor Rachel’s blood sugar level closely and they often go to Rachel’s school during her lunch hour to giver her insulin.

"It’s challenging that way," Liz said. "A lot of people ask if I fed her a lot of sugar when she was little and it isn’t like that. It’s an autoimmune disease where the body attacks its own cells."

Myths continue to surround diabetes such as children who have diabetes can eat birthday cake and other sweets. With more education, these myths will soon go away, she said.

Roche Diagnostics held its first movie premier for children with Type 1 diabetes on Saturday. More than 25 families attended a private screening of Tangled at Silver City. Rachel came with her mom, dad and her younger brother, Devon, 6. She said she liked the idea of seeing the movie with other children who understand what she is going through.

Liz said the movie was a good idea for parents to network and learn more from each other.

"You get to know that you’re not the only one out there," she said. "When I first saw all the children, you’re shocked at first. You don’t realize there are so many kids with diabetes in the community and how many lives are affected by it."

The Canadian Diabetes Association describes Type 1 diabetes as a disease in which the pancreas does not produce insulin, a hormone that controls the level of glucose in a person’s body. With Type 1 diabetes, the glucose builds up in the body’s blood and isn’t used as energy.

Brad Bushby, a diabetes care representative with Accu-Chek, said getting parents to network was the goal of the movie. With the help of the Thunder Bay Diabetes Centre, Bushby said he invited all the children in Thunder Bay who had Type 1 diabetes so the children and their families could make friends with other families. These networking opportunities could then allow participating families to create support groups.

Bushby said it’s important for families to network and share their life experiences together.

"Kids with Type 1 diabetes have some unique challenges," Bushby said. "If they’re getting know other families with those same types of challenges, it is important for them to share what they are doing and help make sure everyone stays healthy."