Jacob's Personal Page

Another Year, Another Walk! Our family is excited to participate in another JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) Walk this year at the Mall of America. This year will mark our 5th year at the walk and we will be joined by one-half million other walkers across the country, as we try to reach our goal of raising $89 million.

Type 1, or juvenile diabetes, is a devastating disease that affects millions of people. Most are diagnosed with this disease as a child but I was one of the growing population that was diagnosed as an adult in my 20's. It was a real eye opener and was a huge adjustment but one that was made easier with all the available technology and medications made possible by walks like these. We are able to maintain our disease with insulin but there is no cure, it can not be put into remission (like type 2 diabetes), it is forever unless we find a cure. Insulin is able to slow the progression of the disease but it is not perfect and there continues to be side effects and the disease continues to damage many of our organs including our liver, kidneys, pancrease, and heart. How do we get this disease - we do not know for sure. It may be genetic according to some studies or caused by a virus that attacks our immune system which then attacks the insulin producing cells and kills them.

There is some good news, though. JDRF is our best hope for finding a cure. It funds more type 1 diabetes research than any other charity worldwide and it's making progress along many promising paths toward better treatments and a cure. Currently, our children can be tested to find out if they have a genetic flaw that may cause type 1 diabetes and if they do, receive treatment to attempt to prevent the onset of the disease.

Now, more than ever, you can make a crucial difference. Won't you please give to JDRF as generously as possible? Together, we can make the cure a reality! Thank you for taking the time to read this and for your help - we truly appreciate it!

Thank you to all of you from our family!

Danielle, Jacob, Logan and Dylann Norrid

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