Puberty is a time of physical and psychological upheaval. For girls, puberty can start between the ages of 9 & 14. For boys it begins anywhere between 10 & 17. However, it is not unusual for there to be a slight delay of puberty in young people with diabetes, especially if there is poor control of blood sugar levels.

PUBERTY & DIABETES

It can be hard work to maintain the recommended blood glucose levels during puberty as hormonal changes that happen during puberty can affect your body’s ability to use insulin
Girls will often find that their blood glucose levels rise either before or at the time of their period and should discuss it with their diabetes team to see if their insulin regimen might need changing.
Girls thinking about going on the contraceptive pill should ensure that the health professional prescribing this is aware of their diabetes as certain types of the pill are better for young women with diabetes.
This resource has more information and advice about how puberty affects diabetes
For information on Sex & Diabetes see here.

STRESS, PUBERTY & DIABETES

Elevated stress levels due to exams and other life events can cause the body to produce even more hormones to help them deal with the stress, which in turn cause blood glucose levels to rise
When experiencing stress, you need to monitor your blood glucose levels more often and seek advice from the healthcare team as to whether or not you need to adjust the doses of insulin.
For help with managing stress and diabetes see “Diabetes & Emotional Wellbeing”