S/F Bringing up a child can be a tricky business for any parent, but discovering they have a life-threatening illness is something everyone hopes they will never have to face. Lorraine Trowers, whose six-year-old little boy Reuben was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes over a year ago. Liz Weafer spoke to her about how she copes.

WHEN Reuben started wetting the bed every night Lorraine assumed he had a bladder infection, but it turned out to be much worse than expected.

Lorraine's life is hugely affected by Reuben's illness , which could cause him to go into a coma.

She is constantly having to think about meal times and cannot leave the house without his insulin kit.

Reuben, a pupil at Archway School, is injected with insulin several times a day, which keeps his blood sugar levels down.

Sometimes these levels drop too low and he suffers what is called a 'hypo.' Hypo is short for hypoglycaemic, and can be caused by taking too much insulin, eating too little or at the wrong time or too much exercise.

"Reuben has never gone into a coma because we recognise the signs and he voices them by saying he feels wobbly," said Lorraine, 37, from Victory Road in Stroud.

"This has been a big learning curve for us but we're all doing really well - Reuben has even starting injecting himself.

Lorraine and her partner Merijn Speller are determined not to let Reuben's illness affect their lives any more than it has to.

"We spent a few weeks travelling around Turkey last year and had an amazing time," she said.

"But it's always at the back of your mind - is he running around too much? Has he eaten enough?

"Things can be going along nicely and then Reuben can be ill for no obvious reason, that's the real beast of diabetes, its in control of us.

"The worst thing is the feeling of not knowing how to feed your own child.

"We also worry about the psychological effect all this may have on him so we try to talk to him about his illness as much as we can."

Type 1 diabetes can develop at any age, although it usually develops in children and is also referred to as juvenile onset diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes is caused by a lack of insulin output because of damage to the pancreas gland.

Insulin is the key hormone that controls the flow of glucose, which is one of the key fuels used by the cells of the body for its energy needs.

As a result of the lack of insulin output in Type 1 diabetes, the blood sugar level climbs.