May 4th, 2008 kyleroth Posted in diabetes, sports No Comments »

Diabetic Athletes

Jay Cutler, originally uploaded by bigfoulbeast.

The most recent athlete diagnosed with type one diabetes is Denver Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler. It was sort of strange to see the anchors on SportCenter discuss the symptoms and problems with type one. He is not the first nor the last to be diagnosed, but being a quarterback makes his diagnosis all the more visible. There have been some other athletes with diabetes including Jackie Robinson and more recently Kendall Simmons of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Adam Morrison of the Charlotte Bobcats, but overall there are not too many diabetics in the professional ranks of sports.

As many of you know, my wife is a type one diabetic athlete. She has competed in many distance races since her diagnosis in 2007 including completing a marathon. She is strong woman and an inspiration to me and many other people. When I first heard of Jay’s diagnosis, I felt bad for him and his family, it is a blow and causes a massive lifestyle change. After hearing the anchors on ESPN talk about it and how he would have someone monitor him all of the time during games I started to think a little more about it. Erika ran 26.2 miles straight with no breaks, carried carbs with her in the form of bloks, monitored her sugar and completed her goal of running a marathon. And she will be running another one in Chicago this fall.

I am not diminishing the skill or athleticism that is needed to compete in the NFL, but I don’t think that Jay is going to be running 26.2 miles anytime soon. I am a fan of what Jay can do on the field ever since watching him operate at the helm as the quarterback at Vanderbilt. I do believe that with proper treatment he can excel. It is now in his hands to control his disease to make sure he is at optimal health. He is also in a good position to draw more awareness to type one diabetes and get more people involved in the research of diabetes. Here is to hoping he carries that torch and even as a Steelers fan, I wish Jay the best of luck and health.