Quality of life affects diabetes control, new research finds

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New international research has found that children with Type 1 diabetes who come from broken homes have more difficulty controlling their condition.

The research took place in Ireland, Europe, North America, Japan and Aus­tralia, and was presented recently at the International Society for Paediatric Dia­betes in South Africa. Prof Hilary Hoey from Trinity College Dublin, one of the study authors, said for the first time, they have shown a clear link between diabetes control and quality of life.

The quality of life diabetes study also found that over-protective parents of diabetes children do not help in managing the disease.

The team, which included Prof Hoey and Prof Hannah Magee from the Royal College of Surgeons’ Department of Psychology, studied 2,062 adolescents, 300 of whom were from Ireland, with Type 1 diabetes to examine a possible relationship between recommended HbA1C levels and lifestyle factors such as parental wellbeing and family relationships.
The children’s HbA1C levels were compared with questionnaires distributed to parents.

About 80 per cent of parents reported “good wellbeing”, and their children had significantly low HbA1C levels and were less worried about their diabetes. The children of parents with lower quality of life scores had higher HbA1C levels, and maternal wellbeing was a significant factor in how the diabetes patient’s condition was managed.

The authors state that doctors should not overlook psycho-social issues when managing diabetes.