-
Home
- TV Shows
- TV Schedule
- NASCAR
-
Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Games
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
- Home
- TV Shows
-
TV Schedule
-
SPEED Showcase
-
- NASCAR
- Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
ARCA: Ryan Reed Not Letting Type 1 Diabetes Sideline His Dreams
ARCA Racing Series driver Ryan Reed is not letting Type 1 diabetes sideline his racing dreams.
Ryan Reed, left. (Photo: Supplied)
ARCA Racing Series driver Ryan Reed remembers the insatiable thirst; the thoroughly unquenchable desire for immense amounts of water.
“It was really intense,” said Reed, now 10th in points after four consecutive top-10 finishes, the latest a sixth-place finish at Pocono. “I’ve never been stuck in the desert without water, but I have a feeling I know what it feels like. Water was the only thing that made me feel better, and it only lasted for a couple of seconds before I was thirsty again. I could drink a gallon of water and still be painfully thirsty.”
The thirst, and the weight loss to follow, led Reed to believe something was dramatically wrong inside his 17-year-old body.
“I was driving from my home in Bakersfield, California to North Carolina with my crew chief and I’d stop and get a couple bottles of water,” recalls Reed, now a developmental driver in the Venturini Motorsports program. “An hour later, I’d have to stop and use the bathroom. This went on for a few hours and a few more stops until my crew chief finally said, ‘If you’re going to keep doing this for the next 36 hours across the country, this isn’t going to work.’”
After the trip, Reed began an Internet search, typing in his symptoms.
“I started Googling the symptoms and it kept pointing to Type 1 diabetes,” said Reed, who celebrated his 19th birthday last weekend and will race in a Super Late Model event this weekend in Las Vegas. “I have a friend who has T1D, but I really didn’t know any details about the disease.”
PHOTOS: Ryan Reed ARCA Gallery
A visit to the family doctor in February of 2011 confirmed the self-diagnosis, and it didn’t take long for Reed’s concern to center around his ability to continue racing.
Type 1 diabetes (T1D), or Juvenile diabetes as it is often called, is an autoimmune disease in which a person's pancreas stops producing insulin, a hormone that enables people to get energy from food.
As an athlete, the constant battle between being “too high” and “too low” is a minute-to-minute battle. High blood sugar can lead to thirst, blurry vision, fatigue, dizziness, drowsiness and confusion. Low blood sugar can manifest itself as trembling, confusion, headaches, seizures and, in the worst case, coma and death.
“I explained to my family doctor that I was an aspiring race car driver, and I wanted to know how T1D was going to affect my future,” Reed said. “The response was, ‘There will be no racing cars anymore … you need to concentrate on getting healthy. Racing is out of the question.’”
Shortly after his diagnosis, Reed took a long afternoon drive to clear his head, consider his health and ponder his future as a race car driver. He decided he wasn’t ready to give up on his lifelong dream.
“I realized this wasn’t something I had done to myself … this wasn’t self-inflicted, so I refused to get depressed about it,” said Reed, who went back to the Internet looking for answers.
Enter Dr. Anne Peters, an internationally recognized diabetologist, professor of medicine and Director of USC’s Clinical Diabetes Program.
“I came across Dr. Peters and saw that she worked with other athletes, including (IndyCar driver Charlie Kimball), dealing with T1D,” Reed said. “And she was only a couple hours away from where I lived, so my father called and explained my situation and she agreed to see me right away. From the first time we met, she was so positive. It was the turning point in the diagnosis for me. It gave me a whole new outlook on my future. Everyone else had been so negative, but now I felt like I was getting my life back.”
While Peters was able to apply some of her work with Kimball to Reed immediately, she is quick to point out that every person with T1D is unique.
“The biology of their disease is different,” explained Dr. Peters, who also has worked with Olympic swimmer Gary Hall. “Each person with Type 1 diabetes has a different initial course. Each person is somewhat different, so you have to deal with their body and what their body is doing.
“And while Ryan and Charlie are both racers, there are differences in what they do,” Peters added. “The car is different … the races are different. Charlie operates in a tight capsule, while Ryan has the freedom of space.”
Reed’s regimen now includes diet, a religious fitness program, the use of a Dexcom constant glucose monitor in the race car and an Accelerade drinking system that allows him to maintain strategic blood sugar goals throughout the race.
“In working with anyone, it is important that the individual is eager, interested in learning and feels a sense of responsibility to help others with diabetes,” Peters said. “The person has to be motivated to do things the right way … you can’t just get in a race car and drive with diabetes.”
With his health under better control and a plan in place for maintaining safe and consistent blood sugar levels while behind the wheel, the next step was convincing NASCAR and other racing sanctioning bodies that he posed no threat to himself or other drivers due to his condition.
“It was really intense,” said Reed, now 10th in points after four consecutive top-10 finishes, the latest a sixth-place finish at Pocono. “I’ve never been stuck in the desert without water, but I have a feeling I know what it feels like. Water was the only thing that made me feel better, and it only lasted for a couple of seconds before I was thirsty again. I could drink a gallon of water and still be painfully thirsty.”
The thirst, and the weight loss to follow, led Reed to believe something was dramatically wrong inside his 17-year-old body.
“I was driving from my home in Bakersfield, California to North Carolina with my crew chief and I’d stop and get a couple bottles of water,” recalls Reed, now a developmental driver in the Venturini Motorsports program. “An hour later, I’d have to stop and use the bathroom. This went on for a few hours and a few more stops until my crew chief finally said, ‘If you’re going to keep doing this for the next 36 hours across the country, this isn’t going to work.’”
After the trip, Reed began an Internet search, typing in his symptoms.
“I started Googling the symptoms and it kept pointing to Type 1 diabetes,” said Reed, who celebrated his 19th birthday last weekend and will race in a Super Late Model event this weekend in Las Vegas. “I have a friend who has T1D, but I really didn’t know any details about the disease.”
PHOTOS: Ryan Reed ARCA Gallery
A visit to the family doctor in February of 2011 confirmed the self-diagnosis, and it didn’t take long for Reed’s concern to center around his ability to continue racing.
Type 1 diabetes (T1D), or Juvenile diabetes as it is often called, is an autoimmune disease in which a person's pancreas stops producing insulin, a hormone that enables people to get energy from food.
As an athlete, the constant battle between being “too high” and “too low” is a minute-to-minute battle. High blood sugar can lead to thirst, blurry vision, fatigue, dizziness, drowsiness and confusion. Low blood sugar can manifest itself as trembling, confusion, headaches, seizures and, in the worst case, coma and death.
“I explained to my family doctor that I was an aspiring race car driver, and I wanted to know how T1D was going to affect my future,” Reed said. “The response was, ‘There will be no racing cars anymore … you need to concentrate on getting healthy. Racing is out of the question.’”
Shortly after his diagnosis, Reed took a long afternoon drive to clear his head, consider his health and ponder his future as a race car driver. He decided he wasn’t ready to give up on his lifelong dream.
“I realized this wasn’t something I had done to myself … this wasn’t self-inflicted, so I refused to get depressed about it,” said Reed, who went back to the Internet looking for answers.
Enter Dr. Anne Peters, an internationally recognized diabetologist, professor of medicine and Director of USC’s Clinical Diabetes Program.
“I came across Dr. Peters and saw that she worked with other athletes, including (IndyCar driver Charlie Kimball), dealing with T1D,” Reed said. “And she was only a couple hours away from where I lived, so my father called and explained my situation and she agreed to see me right away. From the first time we met, she was so positive. It was the turning point in the diagnosis for me. It gave me a whole new outlook on my future. Everyone else had been so negative, but now I felt like I was getting my life back.”
While Peters was able to apply some of her work with Kimball to Reed immediately, she is quick to point out that every person with T1D is unique.
“The biology of their disease is different,” explained Dr. Peters, who also has worked with Olympic swimmer Gary Hall. “Each person with Type 1 diabetes has a different initial course. Each person is somewhat different, so you have to deal with their body and what their body is doing.
“And while Ryan and Charlie are both racers, there are differences in what they do,” Peters added. “The car is different … the races are different. Charlie operates in a tight capsule, while Ryan has the freedom of space.”
Reed’s regimen now includes diet, a religious fitness program, the use of a Dexcom constant glucose monitor in the race car and an Accelerade drinking system that allows him to maintain strategic blood sugar goals throughout the race.
“In working with anyone, it is important that the individual is eager, interested in learning and feels a sense of responsibility to help others with diabetes,” Peters said. “The person has to be motivated to do things the right way … you can’t just get in a race car and drive with diabetes.”
With his health under better control and a plan in place for maintaining safe and consistent blood sugar levels while behind the wheel, the next step was convincing NASCAR and other racing sanctioning bodies that he posed no threat to himself or other drivers due to his condition.
Shake and Bake: Recent Posts
-
Daryl ' Vodkatime ' Wright Takes To Charlotte Motor Speedway »
-
Brad Keselowski's All-Star Car Features Awkward Kyle Busch Photo »
-
Kyle Busch Kicks Off All-Star Weekend With Trucks Win »
-
Dale Earnhardt Sr., Father of the All-Star Paint Scheme »
-
Charlotte Television Schedule: Sprint All-Star Weekend »
-
Trickle Was A Legend »
-
Last Lap: Trickle Dead At 71; Harmon Denies Stealing Cobb's Trailer (Video) »
-
Charmin Billboard: Skid Marks Are For Racetracks (Not Your Underwear) »
LATEST HEADLINES: NASCAR
-
EXCLUSIVE: Kahne Says He And Kyle Busch Are Cool
Kasey Kahne spun out racing Kyle Busch for the lead at Darlington… -
CUP: Saturday Charlotte Notebook (UPDATE 2)
Matt Kenseth is one of the favorites to win tonight’s Sprint… -
CUP: JGR Heavily Favored, But No Slam Dunk
Joe Gibbs Racing is five-for-five on intermediate-length tracks this… -
CUP: Earnhardt Fond Of 'Home' Track
Dale Earnhardt Jr. grew up a few miles from Charlotte Motor Speedway...… -
TRUCKS: It’s Kyle Busch – Again
Kyle Busch rallied from a pit-road problem to win Camping World Truck… -
CUP: Friday Charlotte Notebook (UPDATE 14)
Kyle Busch wins the North Carolina Education Lottery 200... -
CUP: Edwards Wins All-Star Pole
Carl Edwards has good speed and a good pit stop to win All-Star pole…… - More News
