The Belize Diabetes Association (BDA), a support group for people living with diabetes, will conduct a summer camp for children and young adults living with Type 1 diabetes, from Tuesday, July 29, to Friday, August 3. The camp will be held at the ITVET compound on Freetown Road in the old capital.
All children and young adults from 5 to 24 years of age from all over the country are urged to attend. During the camp, they will be trained in caring for themselves, without the help of others. The deadline for registration for this year’s camp is tomorrow, Friday, July 26.
The BDA said that the aim of the summer camp is to educate the participants about diabetes, how to avoid its complications, and to interact with others of their age living with the same condition. At the camp there will be educational and recreational sessions. There will also be presentations made by doctors, physical training instructors, and a nutritionist.
Michelle Godoy of the BDA is encouraging people living with the condition to register with the BDA at the main office on the second floor of the Commercial Center. She urges people not to take the disease lightly due to the terrible complications that could result if the disease is ignored or untreated, some of which include kidney failure, which leads to the need to undergo expensive dialysis treatments involving the use of machines, and amputations, among many other severe consequences.
Participants will also benefit from free monitoring, strips, lancets, syringes and so on.
Interested individuals can contact the BDA at their office at the Commercial Center, or they can call 207-3333, 662-9239 or 670-9239, Monday to Friday, during normal working hours.