Around 10,000 Aussie kids
have type 1 diabetes (T1D).
Do you have a student with
T1D at your school?
Jelly Babies is a fun and
educational JDRF fundraiser
that’s about Kids Helping
Kids.
Join the growing list of
schools nationwide that are
part of the effort to cure, treat
and prevent T1D.
JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation)
ACN 002 286 553 | ABN 40 002 286 553 | DGR 042 753 | www.jdrf.org.au | 1300 363 126
JDRF
JDRF (the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) is the world's
largest charitable supporter of type 1 diabetes (T1D) research.
JDRF was founded in 1970 in the US and 1982 in Australia by a
group of determined volunteers.
Internationally, JDRF has been involved in every major T1D
breakthrough of the last four decades. Throughout it all, JDRF's
mission remains constant - to find a cure for T1D and its complications
through the support of research.
Type 1
Diabetes (T1D)
T1D is a life-long autoimmune
disease that usually occurs in
childhood but can be diagnosed at
any age. T1D affects over 120,000
people in Australia alone.
T1D is caused by the immune system
mistakenly turning on itself, destroying beta cells within the pancreas and removing
the body's ability to produce insulin. Insulin allows the body to process
sugar to create energy - without insulin, the body literally starves as it
cannot process food.
Symptoms of Type 1 Diabetes
•
extreme thirst
•
blurred vision
•
constant hunger
•
nausea
•
sudden weight loss
•
vomiting
•
frequent urination
•
extreme tiredness
If you notice these symptoms call a doctor and offer fluids WITHOUT SUGAR.
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TREATMENT
The goal of T1D management is to keep blood glucose levels as close to the normal
range as possible. It sounds easy, but in reality, this is very difficult to achieve.
To stay alive, people with T1D must have a regular supply of insulin through
injections or an insulin pump. They must test their blood sugar by pricking their
fingers. For children it is recommended to do this 6 – 8 times a day. People with T1D
must be prepared for potential hypoglycaemic (low blood sugar) and
hyperglycaemic (high blood sugar) incidents, which can be life threatening.
Why Jelly Babies?
People with T1D usually travel with a ‘hypo kit’ that supplies an emergency source of
sugar if their BGL (blood glucose level) drops dangerously low. For most people a
hypo kit usually includes a few lollies. Low blood glucose can be life-threatening if
left untreated, so Jelly Babies can be a lifesaver. Our mums also like to think that in
the stressful moments of a hypo, the friendly jelly faces can also help to calm the
children that live with this chronic disease.
Jelly Babies was founded 17 years ago by a group of mums whose children have
T1D. Their goal was to be part of a better future for people with T1D by supporting
medical research and they chose the jelly baby to symbolise childhood with T1D.
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Kids Helping Kids
There are lots of ways your school community can fundraise and be part of a better future for
people with T1D. Activities can be partnered with T1D awareness and lesson resources.
You can even have your Student Council help organise!
Set up a Stall
Colouring
Competition
Dress up or Mufti Day
Jelly Babies Cut Out
Character
Host a Morning Tea
Guess the Teacher
Disco Night
Sausage Sizzle
Start the day with a speech at assembly, and set up a stall
at lunch selling Jelly Babies items. It’s a great opportunity
for the Student Council to become involved in organizing
stock, advertising and accounting for funds raised and
stock sold. Jelly Babies could also be sold at the school
canteen.
Host a colouring competition using our Jelly Babies themed
picture on page 13, or download it from the website.
Approach local businesses to donate prizes.
For a gold coin donation, students and staff can dress up
with crazy socks, coloured laces, hats or even as a Super
Hero. Students can even wear their favourite Jelly Babies
colour.
How far can you make the Jelly Babies Cut Out Characters
walk around the school? For a gold coin donation, a
student can purchase a Jelly Babies Character; that’s how
the line grows! Then use the characters as lucky tickets at
the end of your fundraising event by getting the students to
write their name on every character they purchase. See the
character on page 12, or download it from the website.
Students can bring along homemade cakes and biscuits to
sell for a gold coin donation.
Hold a “Guess the Teacher” competition. Ask the students
to guess who the teachers are in childhood photos.
Hold a disco and have a gold coin donation as the entry fee.
Hold a sausage sizzle at a school event or at lunchtime. Get
your local baker and butcher to support your fundraising
effort by donating the bread and sausages.
For more ideas, please contact your local JDRF office.
See back page for contact details.
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Awareness & Lesson Resources
What is Diabetes?
Diabetes in kids
The role of insulin
There are two main kinds of diabetes.
Type 1 diabetes (T1D) develops in
people of all ages— children,
teenagers, and adults. Type 2 diabetes
mostly affects adults but can also be
diagnosed in children. Once a person
develops T1D, it lasts a lifetime. T1D
will never turn into type 2 diabetes.
We all need insulin to live. Insulin
delivers glucose from the food we eat
to the cells in our bodies, which then
use the glucose for energy. In people
without diabetes, the pancreas makes
the right amount of insulin at the right
time. For people with T1D, the
pancreas no longer makes insulin.
Without insulin, the cells cannot
receive the “fuel” they need, and in
time, the cells starve. Furthermore, the
extra glucose that floats unabsorbed
in the bloodstream is toxic and can
cause serious medical conditions over
time.
Type 1 Diabetes (T1D)
T1D is an autoimmune disease. For
reasons not fully understood, the
body’s immune system destroys the
insulin-producing beta cells within the
pancreas. Without insulin, glucose
cannot move from the bloodstream
into the cells of the body to provide
them with the energy they need to
function. So the cells must get insulin
manually, either through daily
injections or from an insulin pump.
Type 2 Diabetes
In type 2 diabetes, the pancreas
makes some insulin, but either there’s
not enough of it or the cells don’t use it
well. Children and adults with type 2
diabetes don’t always need insulin
shots, as people with T1D do. Most of
them control their diabetes with other
medication and by eating healthy
foods and exercising regularly.
A balancing act
Most people don’t think about their
pancreas and what it does, but people
with T1D must be mindful of their
blood-sugar control all the time. To
maintain their blood sugar at a healthy
level, they must balance food intake
with exercise and insulin. Food tends
to make glucose levels rise; exercise
and insulin tend to make glucose
levels fall. Figuring out how much
insulin to take at any one time can be
challenging for a person with T1D - it
requires a lot of knowledge, care, and
mathematical calculations. But it is
very important.
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Fill in the Blank Mystery
Eating gives us the fuel we need to live. But that’s only
part of the story. Fill in the blanks in these sentences
with words that have to do with diabetes.
Word bank
insulin cells insulin
beta glucose We
stomach pancreas eat
food sugar
When you __ __ __, you not only feed your
hunger, you feed your body.
From your head to your toes, your body is made up of millions of
__ __ __ __ __.
To do their work, your body’s cells need a fuel called __ __ __ __ __.
The sugar comes from the __ __ __ __ we eat.
Another name for this fuel is __ __ __ __ __ __ __.
But to be able to eat, the cells need access to a ‘key’ called
__ __ __ __ __ __ __.
Insulin is made in a part of your body called the
__ __ __ __ __ __ __ __.
The pancreas is a small organ about 10cms long, which sits behind
your __ __ __ __ __ __ __.
Special cells in the pancreas called __ __ __ __ cells make insulin.
When T1D happens, the pancreas stops making __ __ __ __ __ __ __.
__ __ all need insulin to live.
Meet your pancreas!
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True or False Quiz: The Truth About T1D
How much do you know about type 1 diabetes (T1D)?
1. Can you catch T1D?
No! T1D is not contagious. You
can’t catch it like a cold, the flu, or
chicken pox. Doctors know some
things about T1D, but they still
don’t know what causes the
disease. One thing they are sure of:
people living with T1D did not catch
it from anyone else. Neither can
you!
2. Can you get T1D from eating too
many lollies?
No! You may get problems with
your teeth from eating too many
lollies, and you may be unhealthy.
But you won’t get T1D. People with
T1D didn’t do anything wrong. It
just happened. So if you know
someone with T1D, be a friend.
3. Doesn’t insulin fix T1D?
No! Everyone has a pancreas.
Everyone needs insulin to live.
Everyone with T1D has to make up
for the fact that their pancreas no
longer makes insulin. They take
insulin through injections or an
insulin pump. But insulin is not a
cure for T1D, it’s a treatment.
Scientists are trying to find ways to
fix or replace the damaged
pancreatic cells in people with
T1D. They hope that the new cells
will once again produce insulin.
Now, that would be a cure!
4. People with T1D can eat cake and
ice cream
True! But like everybody else, they
should not eat too much of these
types of foods.
5. You can’t tell if a person has T1D
just by looking at them
True! People with T1D are just like
everyone else. They look and act
perfectly “normal.” It’s only their
pancreases that do not work right.
6. People with T1D can and do lead
amazing lives
True! Living with T1D may not be
easy, but people with the disease
can do whatever they set their
minds to. There are actors,
doctors, racing car drivers,
footballers, writers, and even
Olympic athletes who live with T1D.
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Primary School Assembly
Speech Notes
Today I want to talk to you about DIABETES.
Diabetes is the name given to disorders in which the body has trouble
regulating its blood-glucose, or blood-sugar, levels. There are two major
types of diabetes: type 1 and type 2.
They are not the same!
Let’s start with Type 2 Diabetes.
Type 2 diabetes is a disorder in which a person’s body still produces insulin
but is unable to use it effectively. You can get type 2 diabetes from eating too
much and not having enough exercise, or if your parents have type 2
diabetes. Usually only grownups get it, but some children do too, so it is
important to get into the habit of eating healthy food and enjoying plenty of
exercise. Type 2 diabetes can usually be prevented.
Now let’s talk about type 1 diabetes.
With Type 1 Diabetes it is important to remember that you cannot catch it, it is
not caused by eating too much sugar or not having enough exercise, and it is
no one’s fault if you do get it. Type 1 Diabetes is what’s called an autoimmune
disease, in which the person’s pancreas stops producing insulin. Insulin is a
hormone that lets us get energy from the food we eat. Your body needs
insulin to give you energy every day to run and play – and do your school
work!
Everyone in the world needs insulin to live. So how does someone manage
type 1 diabetes?
Page 8 of 14
People with type 1 diabetes must carefully balance eating and other activities
all the time. Every day and every night. They have to give themselves insulin
using an injection or a pump. If they are injecting insulin, they need up to 6
injections EVERY SINGLE DAY. This means they will check the amount of
glucose in their blood up to 6 times a day by pricking their finger with a very
sharp needle. Sometimes, if someone with type 1 diabetes doesn’t have
enough glucose in their blood, they can feel sick or faint. That’s why you may
see them eating sugary foods – like jelly babies.
During one year a person with type 1 diabetes would have at least 730
injections and 1,460 finger pricks.
What Is It Like to Have Type 1 Diabetes?
Well it never goes away. You can NEVER go without treatment, NOT EVEN
FOR ONE DAY. It can be hard, and sometime upsetting, and it never goes
away. But at the same time, people with type 1 diabetes don’t let it stand in
the way of achieving their goals.
[Allow teacher, student or guest speaker with type 1 to speak.]
JDRF helps raise money to help all the scientists around the world to do lots
of research to find a cure for type 1 diabetes. This year, our school is going to
help raise money for the scientists so they can find a cure for type 1 diabetes!
[Talk about your event, what your school goal is and any incentives for the
students/school]
Page 9 of 14
School Newsletter Notes
Our school is learning about diabetes.
(OPTIONAL) You might not know that our school has X students have type 1
diabetes. This is because they look like every other kid, but they have an
important difference.
Kids with type 1 diabetes have an autoimmune
disease that means they cannot produce their own
insulin. You can’t catch type 1 diabetes and it’s not
caused by lack of exercise or too much sugar.
It occurs when the body’s immune system
mistakenly destroys the cells in the pancreas that
produce insulin. Everyone needs insulin to live.
People with type 1 diabetes require up to 6 insulin injections every day. They
also need to check their blood glucose (sugar) levels up to 6 times a day (by
way of a finger prick) and carefully monitor their food intake and exercise
regime on a daily basis.
If their blood glucose level drops too low (commonly referred to as a “hypo”)
they require a quick dose of sugar to prevent them going so low so as to go
into a coma.
Jelly Babies are often used as a quick source of sugar. Type 1 diabetes is
difficult to manage. Around 10,000 kids in Australia have this form of
diabetes, which accounts for around 10% of all people with diabetes.
It is with you for life as there is currently no known cure. Every day 5 more
Australians are diagnosed with this disease, most of them are children.
There is no known way to prevent type 1 diabetes but scientists are working
on it. That’s where we come in! JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research
Foundation) is working hard to help find a cure by leading research to cure,
treat and prevent type 1 diabetes.
Our school will be supporting JDRF and helping to deliver a better future for
kids with type 1 diabetes by…
(INSERT YOUR FUNDRAISER INFORMATION)
Page 10 of 14
Jelly Babies Song ‘Sing Sugar Sugar’
Australian singer and songwriter Alison Hams wanted to combine her
professional love of music and kids with her personal interest in helping
people with Type 1 Diabetes - and so the "Jelly Baby Song" was born!
Written by Alison in 2012, and produced by her husband Mark Tempany (who
has T1D), the song was recorded with Alison’s young music students. It’s a
toe-tapping, sing-a-long tune raising funds for JDRF. Listen to the song, and
teach your students.
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Jelly Babies Cut-out Character
Page 12 of 14
Jelly Babies Colouring Competition
My name is ______________________________________
Page 13 of 14
JDRF in your state
ACT
Mel Eveille
16 Thesiger Court
Deakin ACT 2600
P: 02 6109 4901
E: meveille@jdrf.org.au
SA
Tamara Aitchison
Unit 3, 497 Marion Road
South Plympton SA 5038
P: 08 8490 0171
E: taitchison@jdrf.org.au
NSW
Kate Reid
Level 4, 80-84 Chandos Street
St Leonards NSW 2065
P: 02 9020 6123
E: kreid@jdrf.org.au
VIC/TAS
Fiona Lobo
Whitten Oval, Level 1
417 Barkley Street
Footscray VIC 3012
P: 03 8374 6202
E: flobo@jdrf.org.au
QLD/NT
Rebecca Pascoe
Level 5
155 – 157 Wickham Terrace
Spring Hill QLD 4000
P: 07 3046 2702
E: rpascoe@jdrf.org.au
WA
Jack Callow
Unit 3, 181 Main Street
Osborne Park WA 6017
P: 08 6444 0752
E: jcallow@jdrf.org.au
Thank you for supporting
Jelly Babies
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