OBJECTIVE: To identify the difficulties of children with diabetes mellitus type 1 in their family and social daily life, focusing on aspects related to feeding and treatment. METHODS: This cross-sectional study was performed with a semi-structured questionnaire applied to parents and children with diabetes mellitus type 1 at the Diabetes Clinic of the São José do Rio Preto Medical, São Paulo, Brazil. The interview of 13 children included questions regarding demographic data and difficulties related to the control of the disease. RESULTS: The following characteristics were found among the studied children: female gender in 77%, age between eight and 12 years in 77%, white race in 77%, catholics in 61% and presence of family history of diabetes in 54%. Regarding the disease control, the following difficulties were mentioned: special food cost, fear of the unknown, need for quick learning about the disease and shame of having diabetes. Out of 13 children, 23% were learning how to apply insulin and 46% followed the diet prescription at the time of the interview. In 69% of cases, the mother was the closest relative that has helped the child to manage the treatment. Hyperglycemia was present in 62% of the children, and it was detected only after capillary glycemia test. CONCLUSIONS: The present study points out the importance of campaigns to guide parents about the disease control, about factors associated with the development of the disease and the need for identifying the hyperglycemia symptoms in order to minimize future complications of the diabetes.
child; adolescent; diabetes mellitus; home nursing