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Youth lobbies for diabetes research
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A Paradise Valley teen won’t have much time for sightseeing while he’s in Washington, D.C., this week — he’ll be too busy lobbying federal lawmakers.
Tres White, a 15-year-old student at Phoenix Country Day School, will be one of 150 U.S. children with juvenile diabetes to participate in this year’s Children’s Congress, which runs today through Wednesday.
Congress has spent $1.5 billion for juvenile diabetes research the past seven years, said Michael White, Tres’s dad and the chairman of research for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. The Children’s Congress lets participants lobby to maintain that level of funding.
Tres’s family is an unusual case. Not only was Tres diagnosed with juvenile diabetes when he was 18 months old, his mom was diagnosed with the disease four years later.
So the Whites pay attention to advances in juvenile diabetes research. For instance, Tres talked about a mechanism that continuously monitors glucose levels, which has been on the market for a few years.
“Your body measures your glucose level every second. This does it every five minutes or so,” Tres White said.
“It’s a big step and it really helps controlling your blood sugar.”
The foundation, though, wants to examine having that device work in conjunction with an insulin pump, forming a sort of artificial pancreas, the body’s insulin maker, Michael White said.
When he and his dad get to Washington, Tres said he’s most looking forward to a dinner being hosted by the Australian Embassy.
Australia is a leader in juvenile diabetes research, Michael White said.
But most of their time will be spent meeting with lawmakers.
“All politics is local, so we’ll be talking to our state delegation, trying to get their support,” Michael White said.
Tres said he’s “nervous and anxious” to talk to the congressional delegation.
”Sure, I’ve had the chance to talk to researchers and the people my dad talks to,” Tres White said.
“But I’ve never had the chance to talk to someone who can influence this so significantly.”
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