{"id":4853,"date":"2015-04-09T12:52:29","date_gmt":"2015-04-09T02:52:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/?p=4853"},"modified":"2015-04-29T08:37:38","modified_gmt":"2015-04-28T22:37:38","slug":"paddy-and-hugh-are-kicking-goals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/paddy-and-hugh-are-kicking-goals\/","title":{"rendered":"Paddy and Hugh are kicking goals"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AFLBoys\"<\/a>The AFL season has just begun and there are two exciting new names in the League this year, who also happen to be former patients and proud \u2018alumni\u2019 of the RCH Diabetes Service.<\/p>\n

St Kilda’s Number One draft pick Paddy McCartin, 18, was diagnosed with type-one diabetes when he was nine years old. The disciplined key forward monitors his diabetes 15 or 16 times during AFL games, to ensure he is able to perform at his best.<\/p>\n

Hugh Beasley, 20, is a key defender for the Brisbane lions. He also has type-one diabetes and uses an insulin pump to manage his blood glucose.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\u201cI read my blood glucose levels at each quarter,\u201d Hugh said. \u201cI attach the pump at half time and check my basal temperature after that to monitor the levels.\u201d<\/p>\n

RCH Director of Diabetes Services Professor Fergus Cameron says that the hospital encourages all patients to exercise for the cardiorespiratory and psychosocial benefits, especially for those with diabetes.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn terms of specific benefits to diabetes, exercise increases insulin sensitivity and thus can assist in metabolic control,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not unusual for adolescents with type one diabetes to pursue elite sports. We find the numbers in our clinic of kids who play high-level sport are fairly indicative of the general community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Diet is one way that elite athletes can manage their diabetes and play the sports they love.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe recommend a normal diet, as per dietary guidelines, for our patients,\u201d Professor Cameron said. \u201cElite sports players can work with clinicians to create their own strategies to optimise blood glucose control before, during and after their sporting activity. These can be very idiosyncratic- depending on the nature of the activity and the individual person.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hugh worked with a sports dietician to help create a dietary plan that works for him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always eat the same meals on game day,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I keep to a precise routine with my meals.”<\/p>\n

Both Paddy and Hugh were determined that diabetes wouldn\u2019t stop them from perusing their AFL dreams.<\/p>\n

Hugh\u2019s message to young people with diabetes is to never give up.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t leave any stone unturned, there are always ways to manage diabetes. Believe in yourself, back yourself. You parents and clinicians will also provide the support you need,\u201d Hugh said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s all about the messages patients receive about their diabetes,\u201d Professor Cameron added. \u201cAt the RCH we are very strong on pushing that well-managed diabetes should not impede participation in sports at any level. The only exceptions are extreme sports where a momentary loss of judgement could lead to a life-threatening circumstance such as scuba diving or parachuting. These lads just underscore that what we say is borne out by what people achieve.\u201d<\/p>\n

Well done Hugh and Paddy!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Former patients and proud \u2018alumni\u2019 of the RCH Diabetes Service have been recruited to the AFL. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":93,"featured_media":4854,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4853","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-in-the-news"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4853","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/93"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4853"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4853\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4856,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4853\/revisions\/4856"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4854"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.rch.org.au\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}