Diabetes In Popular Media

Diabetes is a chronic illness caused by the impairment of natural insulin production, which results in elevated levels of glucose in a person's body. Knowledge about the disease and understanding of treatment options grew among healthcare professionals throughout the twentieth century, starting with the first insulin treatment in 1922. Along with treatment, doctors learned early in the disease's history that a timely diagnosis was essential to minimizing patient lifestyle changes, which can increase emotional stress and impair the patient's ability to properly manage their health. As diagnosis increased, it became more widely recognized among the public, as well. However, the depiction of diabetes in popular media between 1920 and 1965, especially

The science behind the disease derived mainly from the acceptance of risky research and experimentation in medicine. This acceptance allowed greater knowledge of the diseases at the time and encouraged efficient treatment and understanding. In this period, Diabetes is still being discovered and figured out. There were various uncertainties with the reactions of the disease as well as, treatments. A magazine from 1923 states that “…there is still a bit of danger in [insulin’s] use, but some day we will all know just how to administer it.” At this point in medical history, insulin had been established as a treatment agent for diabetes, although, the best procedure for administering it was still in the process of being discovered. The proper procedure would be discovered later on with the assistance of experimentation and medical advances. The discovery did not come simply though. Dr. Jerome Conn found, in 1965, that diabetes had many similar traits as adrenal tumors and the two were being confused, leading to wrong diagnosis for some patients. This confusion led to uncertainties such as, whether mature-onset diabetes existed and how they would know what they were dealing with considering the similarities in diabetes and adrenal tumors. This depiction explains how recent of a discovery the diabetes disease was, as well as, the typical process for new medical related illnesses and finding

Because of the lack of natural insulin in a diabetic, insulin injections were needed to resist infection and balance blood sugar levels. The first step to treatment was detection of the disease. Timing was essential to the process but there weren’t efficient options to ensure detection and it was discovered that roughly ten million people were unaware they had diabetes. There was a kit that was introduced by the American Diabetes Association named the “SelfTester.” The kit allowed anyone to test themselves to see if their urine contained sugar. Following the test, regardless of the result, it was encouraged to visit a doctor. This kit was available at drugstores for 35-40¢ and allowed the option of two tests to be taken per kit. This kit was a strong example of the desire to diagnose all whom were unaware they had the disease. People of all ages, demographic, social class, and race had access and financial means to use this resource because of its low price and accessibility. As the desire to diagnose the unaware continued in the time period, it was expressed that raising professional awareness would boost early detection in diabetics. In relation to the process of deciphering this disease, it was made priority for medical professionals to be aware of the