Does Lickety-Split ™ Clothing Works support research toward a cure for Diabetes?
YES!  This business was started by a woman whose young son has Type 1 Diabetes and she desperately wants to find a cure.  We donate $1 from every purchase of our products to support research for a cure through the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).

Would Lickety-Split ™ Clothing products make a good gift for a child who is newly diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes?
Absolutely!  All of the wonderful clothing and pajamas make terrific gifts from friends and family who just want to help out, or let a special family know they are thinking about them!  And don’t forget that $1 from every sale goes to support the JDRF.  You’ll be surprised how many options there in our clothing line ~ check out the matching jammies available  for your child’s teddy bear as well!  We aim to please, just let us know if there’s something you’re not finding that you’d like us to carry.

What is Type 1 diabetes?
Also known as: juvenile diabetes, insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), childhood diabetes, and ketosis prone diabetes (Note: some of these terms are now outdated).

Type 1 diabetes accounts for between 5 and 10% of all diagnosed diabetes in the United States. Although type 1 diabetes develops most often in children and young adults (one in every 400-500 children has type 1 diabetes), the disease can be diagnosed at any age throughout the lifespan, and is equally distributed among males and females. Unlike type 2 diabetes, type 1 diabetes is more common in Caucasians than in those of Latino, African-American, or other non-Caucasian backgrounds.

How does someone get Type 1 diabetes?
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that occurs when the insulin-producing beta cells within the pancreas are gradually destroyed and eventually fail to produce insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps the body's cells use glucose for energy. Blood glucose (or blood sugar) is manufactured from the food we eat (primarily carbohydrates) and by the liver. If glucose can't be absorbed by the cells, it builds up in the bloodstream instead, and high blood sugar is the result. Over time, the high blood glucose levels of uncontrolled diabetes can be toxic to virtually every system of the body.

Because type 1 diabetes is frequently diagnosed in childhood, it is sometimes referred to as juvenile diabetes. However, it can develop at any age throughout adulthood. Early diagnosis is important to prevent some of the more serious complications of diabetes, which include heart disease, blindness, high blood pressure, nerve damage, and kidney failure. In addition to following an exercise and healthy eating plan, individuals with type 1 diabetes require insulin injections.

What causes Type 1 diabetes?
The causes of type 1 diabetes are complex and still not completely understood. People with type 1 diabetes are thought to have an inherited, or genetic, predisposition to the disease. Researchers believe that this genetic predisposition may remain dormant until it is activated by an environmental trigger such as a virus or a chemical. This starts an attack on the immune system that results in the eventual destruction of the beta cells of the pancreas.
There are several subtypes of type 1 diabetes, including type 1A diabetes, idiopathic diabetes (type 1B), and latent autoimmune diabetes of adulthood (LADA). The basic treatment (i.e., insulin injections) is the same for all.
Source: www.dLife.com
Last Modified Date: January 3, 2007

What is the latest research information?  Is there a cure in sight?
This is a question JDRF is actually best equipped to answer, as the only major type 1 diabetes organization focused exclusively on research. JDRF is the number one nonprofit, nongovernmental funder of type 1 diabetes research worldwide and our mission is constant: to find a cure for type 1 diabetes and its complications through the support of research. Since our founding in 1970 by parents of children with juvenile diabetes, JDRF has awarded more than $1 billion to type 1 diabetes research (including $122 million in FY2006). JDRF is proud to say that more than 80% of our expenditures go directly to research and education about research. We have been instrumental in establishing a focus on the needs of all people with type 1 diabetes, which has helped set the world’’s juvenile diabetes research agenda to find a cure, and we are witnessing significant research progress. In fact, after more than 35 years, we can now confidently state that, for the first time ever, a cure for type 1 diabetes is not only possible, but likely. To find out the latest in type 1 diabetes research news, you can do several things: subscribe to Countdown magazine; subscribe to JDRF’’s Research Frontline e-newsletter; review the Research pages on this site; and.check their homepage, which is updated with new stories every Wednesday.
Source: http://jdrfwesternwisconsin.org
April 2007.