discovery of insulin – DiabetesDad

Happy Birthday Fred. Yes it is November 14th, the birthday of Sir Frederick Banting, one of the major forces in the discovery of insulin.

Thank you Fred for saving our children’s lives. Were it not for you, we would REALLY have a problem.
Here are some items you may not know about Sir Frederick Banting that you may find interesting.

He received the Nobel Prize in 1923 and was the youngest to ever receive the award in physiology/medicine.

He received the award in his 33rd year of life where he dedicated his life’s work to perfecting insulin to be distributed to the masses. (Thank you for that too Fred!)

He was married twice and had one child.

He loved to paint.

He was knighted in 1934.

He died in his 50th year on February 21, 1941, as a result of injuries received in a plane crash while in route to test aviation equipment. He worked with the Royal Canadian Air Force in testing equipment that would help pilots at high altitudes.

He was nominated as one of the top 10 Canadians who ever lived by a poll run by the Canadian Broadcast Corporation.

So I thought on this day, Diabetes Awareness Day that I would give you a little inside information on the man who saved the lives of our kids and all those who have diabetes. Thank you very much Dr. Banting for all you have done. You have saved millions of lives…….including my two children.

The picture above is well-known to Canadians and sits in Sir Frederick Banting Square in Ontario, Canada. It is the Flame of Hope, which was lit as a tribute to not only Frederick Banting but to all those who lost their lives to diabetes. It would seem that those who worked to preserve his name also knew that in as much as insulin is probably one of the greatest life saving medical advances ever discovered, it is still not a cure.

The wording on the plaque includes these words: “…..This flame will burn continuously and only be extinguished when it can be declared that a cure for diabetes has been found…..”

Amen! Thanks Dr. Banting.

I am a diabetesdad.

P.S. Hear a message from Dr. Camillo Ricordi of the DRI for this special day. Click here.

Information from Flame of Hope Committee, Wikipedia, Nobel Prize Foundation, Biography.com

Tomorrow is Diabetes Awareness Day; November 14^th, the birthday of Frederick Banting one of the few credited with the discovery of insulin. At the time, the headlines stated insulin was a cure. It wasn’t; still isn’t. But when one has nothing, it surely was a great step in saving lives; still does.

November 14^th, tomorrow, is by no means a holiday to me. When I was a child and Mother’s Day rolled around I would say to my mom, “When is Child’s Day?” You all know the answer to question as I am sure every mom has the same answer; (all together now) “Every day is Child’s Day.”

That is somewhat how I feel about diabetes. I do not need a specific day to be reminded about diabetes. I do not need to see ‘something special’ done on the fourteenth of November each year. We, as a community need to continue rowing together demanding the best from the companies and the organizations we support. We need to continue to work together to make sure ‘the media’ gets right and we see diabetes painted in the light according to the specific types and what that represents.

Because when it comes right down to it, in my life, November the fourteenth is the same as every other day. It will remain like every other day until there is a cure; 100% every day. How about you?

What have you done today to try to make a difference in the world of diabetes; or in the life of your child with diabetes above and beyond daily management? I might be for starting something on this date if never done before, but when it comes time for ‘doing something’ we better be doing that every day of the year or we will never move the needle (pun intended) when it comes to diabetes care and a cure.

I know, that management in itself is much to ask isn’t it? But we all need to “not do nothing”—-if our child deals with diabetes 24/7/365—-why are we not doing more? It will not go away until we all work diligently to that end. Cure, better management tools, and getting involved–never be satisfied with where you are at. EVER. In it to end it…..need help to get involved, just ask me–I have plenty of ideas.

Each soldier has to take care of their own well-being, but when together they become an ever forward moving army ready to do battle. Nothing less can be expected by anyone else who ‘has skin in the game’.

Let’s work to making November 14^th about a week before Thanksgiving and nothing more.

The diabetes battle is every day. Get involved today.

I’m a diabetesdad.

Tag: discovery of insulin

Why is November 14th Such……or Some Things You Might Not Know About Sir Frederick.

Tomorrow is…………Yeah, so What?