What's In A Name

I bet you all are wondering why I named this blog the way I did. Okay so maybe I'm a little conceited thinking that you are staying up at night trying to figure this out. Well, I'm going to tell you anyway why I named this blog "Islets in the Stream." And you just might learn something more about diabetes in the process.

I love play-on words and phrases so firstly, the title is a play on the classic country song "Islands in the Stream" by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers. You all know the one....don't make me sing it! Secondly, "islets" refers to the Islets of Langerhans; the hormone producing regions of the pancreas.

The pancreas produces several different hormones. The two that diabetics are concerned most about are insulin, produced by beta cells, and glucagon, produced by alpha cells. The beta cells are the cells that are attacked by the immune system in type-1 diabetes.

Insulin is the hormone that allows sugar to pass from the bloodstream into cells, giving them energy. Lack of insulin raises blood sugar levels. Glucagon is a hormone that signals the liver to release stored sugar, or glucose, into the bloodstream when blood sugar levels fall too low. (Bet you didn't know the liver was involved in diabetes too!)

Leo has an emergency glucagon pen that we carry with him wherever he goes. It is kind of like an epi-pen for diabetics. Though this is not so much a pen and a giant needle with sugar solution in it. If Leo has a severe low (severe meaning unconsciousness or seizures) I have to inject this giant needle into his leg to give his body access to immediate sugar. I've been lucky in that I haven't had to experience this. Honestly, I hope I never do.

Life is a journey. There have been many poets, songwriters, and authors that have referred to life as a journey down a river or stream. We all have our calm days of floating blissfully in the sunshine and we all have days where we have to battle the rapids just to stay afloat. So there you have it. Islets in the Stream.



*There is a great article on Wikipedia that explains the Islets of Langerhans and the other hormones they produce. Just click the link below and you'll find more info!*

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islets_of_Langerhans