Type 1 Diabetes Awareness Month

Proclamation
By the Governor of Alabama

WHEREAS, Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is an autoimmune disease in which a person’s pancreas stops producing insulin, a hormone that enables a person to turn food into energy. While there is no known cause for T1D, it results in a person’s own immune system killing the beta cells in the pancreas, thereby destroying that person’s ability to produce insulin; and

WHEREAS, scientists think that both genetic and environmental aspects may contribute to the onset of T1D, which has nothing to do with diet or lifestyle. There is nothing individuals can do to prevent T1D and there is no cure; and

WHEREAS, it is thought as many as 3 million Americans have T1D, and each year more than 30,000 children and adults are diagnosed with T1D, which is approximately 80 people every day. The incidence of T1D is estimated to increase by 3 percent annually worldwide. T1D accounts for $14.9 billion in healthcare costs in the United States each year; and

WHEREAS, T1D strikes at any age, develops suddenly and in some cases without symptoms. It causes dependence on injected insulin for the rest of that person’s life and carries the constant threat of devastating complications either when blood sugar is too low or too high, making continual monitoring of a person’s blood sugar mandatory; and

WHEREAS, since living with T1D is a constant challenge, people must carefully balance their insulin intake either by injections or continuous infusion by an insulin pump anytime they are going to eat or drink, exercise or experience stressful situations; and

WHEREAS, people with T1D monitor their blood sugar by pricking their fingers six or more times a day but still risk dangerous highs or lows, forcing people with T1D to overcome challenges on a daily and even hourly basis. While insulin injections with a shot or pump allow a person with T1D to stay alive, they are not a cure and may not prevent the possibility of such complications as blindness, stroke, heart attack, and kidney failure; and

WHEREAS, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation is driving research to reduce the impact of the disease on people’s lives and ultimately find a cure for T1D:

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Robert Bentley, Governor of Alabama, do hereby proclaim November 2015 as

Type 1 Diabetes Awareness Month

in the State of Alabama.

Given Under My Hand and the Great Seal of the Office of the Governor at the State Capitol in the City of Montgomery on the 23rd day of October 2015.

Robert Bentley
Governor