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Every new day is a story told thanks to the discovery of insulin
Over the past 100 years, the daily lives of those living with diabetes have changed drastically. Before insulin was discovered in 1921, diabetes was a death sentence. Healthcare professionals watched helplessly as their patients suffered through unsuccessful treatments, which usually consisted of starvation diets.
The pivotal discovery of insulin changed everything.
This new treatment extended the lives of those living with diabetes all over the world, improving their quality of life dramatically. As such, we are commemorating the past century of advancements by exploring patient, caregiver and physician stories, everything we have accomplished in diabetes treatment to date, and looking to the future of diabetes care.
The 1920s
A new normal for those living with diabetes
The discovery of insulin finally enabled doctors to provide the life-changing care they had been longing for. For most patients, insulin resulted in an almost overnight improvement in their quality of life, and for some, it even brought them back from the brink of death. No longer did patients need to reduce calorie intake to the point of starvation. They had the energy needed to live life. Loved ones and family members around the world released a collective sigh of relief, as their family members whose lives has been nearly destroyed, began to recover. Still, some doctors were initially hesitant to start prescribing insulin. But the truth became evident soon enough – just one or two daily injections suddenly gave those living with diabetes hope for a fulfilling life.
Frederick Banting and Charles Best
Banting and Best
How two Canadians changed the course of diabetes.
Like many great innovations, insulin started with a crazy idea. It was the summer of 1921, and a Canadian doctor and medical practitioner, Frederick Banting, theorized that not only would a pancreatic hormone reverse the effects of diabetes, but it could be extracted from the organ to be injected into the bodies of those who suffered from the disease.
Together with his research assistant, Charles Best, a medical student, and Dr. James Collip, Banting set out to prove his theory. By isolating and extracting the pancreatic hormone and injecting it into animals that suffered from diabetes, Banting proved that using this “insulin” lowered blood sugar levels.
Below you’ll find an excerpt from the journal of Lawrence Palmer. He was just 23 years old in 1928 and had recently begun regular insulin injections. From the journal of Lawrence Palmer*
Mid-century
Diabetes care comes of age
By the 1960s, diabetes patients around the world were being treated with insulin, dramatically changing the opportunities they had to live a fulfilling life. But treatment had also evolved beyond just insulin at this point as well – there were new procedures and medicines aimed at addressing the distinct characteristics of different types of diabetes. Thanks to the technological innovations of this era, many of those diagnosed with diabetes are still living rewarding lives today. Winsome Johnson is one of them.
Present Day
We’ve come such a long way
Looking back at the past 100 years of diabetes care, it’s easy to see just how far we’ve come. Living with diabetes today is manageable and continues to improve. Daily management of diabetes has become simpler than ever – needles are as small and sharp as they can be, insulin pumps deliver doses in one-tenth of a unit, and innovative glucose monitors can give you real-time results on your smartphone. No matter their age, diabetes patients and their families around the world are capable of living happy and healthy lives every day.
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Looking to the Future
In the next 100 years, will we defeat diabetes ?
If the past 100 years have taught us anything it’s that a lot can be accomplished to impact the quality of life for those living with diabetes in one century. With that knowledge, we look to the future and to all of the advancements in insulin care that are just over the horizon. Upcoming devices like wearable flexible sweat sensors (WFSs) will not only give patients a simple non-invasive way of tracking their blood-glucose, but provide more data to healthcare professionals, and a greater understanding of diabetes biomarkers.