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American Girl Debuts A Diabetes Care Kit For Dolls

By Lindsay McCane
Published on: 04:35 PST, May 5, 2016

American Girl has revealed a cool new accessory for their dolls that will hopefully raise understanding and awareness about diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes obviously isn’t fun and generally consists of finger pricks and daily doses of insulin. Since there are thousands of kids suffering from diabetes, American Girl decided to create a diabetes care kit so young girls can give the same care to their dolls.

The American Girl diabetes care kit is available online for $24, and includes the following items.

  • A blood sugar monitor and lancing device
  • An insulin pump that can be clipped to a doll’s waistband, plus an adhesive to attach the infusion set
  • An insulin pen, for dolls that aren’t using the pump
  • A medical bracelet
  • Glucose tablets
  • A log book
  • A case for the supplies and an ID card
  • Stickers to personalize the kit

According to the New York Times, Anja Busse, a 13-year-old from Antigo, Wisconsin, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes two years ago, and has been wanting a kit like this for her dolls since. She created an online petition asking American Girl to create a diabetes kit and was able to garner 7,000 signatures. Since Anja’s diagnosis, she has become an advocate who educates her peers about the disease, and the difference between Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.

“There are a lot of things people just don’t understand,” Anja said. “They would try to give me advice and say I should be on a diet, or that they had a cure for this. One person yelled at me not to eat a cupcake. They confuse it with Type 2 diabetes, and all kinds of rumors that aren’t even true.”

Along with the finger pricks and doses of insulin, Type 1 diabetes also carries some unwanted symptoms.

According to the Mayo Clinic, some of those symptoms are include the following.

  • Increased thirst
  • Frequent urination
  • Bedwetting in children who previously didn’t wet the bed during the night
  • Extreme hunger
  • Unintended weight loss
  • Irritability and other mood changes
  • Fatigue and weakness
  • Blurred vision
  • In females, a vaginal yeast infection

American Girl is a company that is known for creating diverse dolls and accessories, and tries to appeal to all types of girls, which is why the idea of a diabetes care kit was so quickly accepted.

“American Girl has a long-standing history of creating dolls that speak to diversity and inclusion, so it’s not really new for us to come out with dolls that are a reflection of girls today,” Stephanie Spanos, a company spokeswoman, said.

So far, American Girl customers have been thrilled with their diabetes care kits and have posted reviews for others to read on American Girl’s website.

“My granddaughter was 3 years old when she was diagnosed with T1D a year ago,” one customer wrote. “It’s very important for kids particularly to feel accepted by the people around them. This diabetes care kit will go a long way in helping her feel “part of the gang” by giving her an opportunity to talk about and teach others about her diabetes. Thank you so much!”

“I ordered this the day it came out,” another customer added. “When my dad showed me I almost cried. I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when I was seven years old and I bought my first AG doll when I was eight. I always wanted my doll to be just like me but when I got older and bought more AG dolls I soon forgot about a diabetes kit. The day before my fourteenth birthday I bought the kit. I love it it’s super accurate and adorable! It means a lot to me that American Girl would make this set so thank you!”

[Image via tishomir/Shutterstock.com]

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