Woman turns sons' illness into hope for others
Diabetes Hope Foundation helps people live with diabetes
Barbara Pasternak's 10-year-old son had just stepped off the ice after wrapping up a playoff game and fainted in his mother's arms. 
"He was feeling very tired, lethargic after the game," she said.
Before she knew it her son, Bobby, was taken to The Hospital for Sick Children and diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, which was formerly called juvenile diabetes.
Bobby spent five days in the hospital, save for a few hours after doctors allowed the youngster to leave to finish the playoffs, Pasternak said.
"Now he's six-foot six-inches and a healthy 24-year-old guy," she said.
But Bobby wasn't Pasternak's only child to be diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.
Just more than a year after Bobby was told the news, 13-year-old Jesse was also diagnosed with the disease.
"He's just finished his second year of medical school and has travelled the world," Pasternak said. "My kids have grown up strong and healthy."
Pasternak's third son, Harley, a celebrity trainer in Los Angeles and author of The 5 Factor Diet, does not have diabetes, she said.
Pasternak, who lives in the Lawrence Avenue and Leslie Street area, founded Diabetes Hope Foundation in 1999 to assist families and children living with diabetes.
Pasternak said the foundation helps children and families better manage diabetes and its complications through education, medical assistance and recreational programs.
The key to managing Type 1 diabetes is finding the balance between insulin, exercise and food, Pasternak said, adding she used to count carbs for her sons and made sure they received enough physical activity at school.
"All of a sudden kids have to be adults and take five to six injections a day," she said.
A big part of the Diabetes Hope Foundation is the medical assistance program, which helps children living with diabetes whose families are not covered by third-party health plans and are struggling with costs including insulin, needles, swabs, glucose monitoring devices and test strips that are not covered by OHIP.
Through donors, the foundation provides necessary supplies for individuals living with diabetes, Pasternak said, adding the average expense per month is between $200 and $350 a patient.
Along with financial assistance, Diabetes Hope Foundation also offers a scholarship program to students living with diabetes in Ontario, Newfoundland and British Columbia.
Since 1999, 229 scholarships have been awarded to students pursuing post-secondary education, Pasternak said.
"We want to celebrate success for these kids," she said.
Visit www.diabeteshopefoundation.com for more information regarding Diabetes Hope Foundation.
Diabetes fast facts
• Type 1 diabetes is not contagious. You can’t catch it like a cold, the flu, or chicken pox. Doctors know some things about diabetes, but they still don’t know what causes it.
• You can’t get diabetes from eating too much candy.
• People with type 1 diabetes have to make up for the fact their pancreas no longer makes insulin. They take insulin through needles or a pump. But insulin is not a cure for diabetes. It’s a treatment.
• People with diabetes can eat cake and ice cream. But like everybody else, they should not overdo the sweets. If they choose to eat candy or cake, they need to take more insulin.
• You can’t tell if a person has diabetes just by looking at them.
• Living with diabetes may not be fun, but people with diabetes can do whatever they set their minds to. There are actors, doctors, writers, golfers and Olympic athletes who live with diabetes.
– Diabetes Hope Foundation
