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The American Diabetes Association and Billie Jean King are now offering $5,000. awards to young tennis players with diabetes, according to a recent press release from the American Diabetes Association. The awards will be presented to two scholar-athletes between the ages of 14 and 21 who play interscholastic, intercollegiate, or intramural tennis, and have type 1 diabetes. The 1999 Donnelly Awards will be presented during the Nuveen Champion's Tournament July 27 to August 1, 1999 in Chicago, Illinois. All interested candidates must submit an official application and a short essay relating the significance of diabetes in his or her life. The deadline for applications is May 1, 1999. You can get guidelines and an application by contacting:
The Donnelly Awards
Attn: Diane or Tracy
445 North Wells, Suite 404
Chicago, IL 60610
(312) 245-5300
In addition to Billie Jean King, the Award Selection Committee includes singer Gladys Knight, New York Knicks star Chris Dudley, and LPGA golfer Michelle McGann. The $5,000. scholarships can be used for education, athletic development, and/or medical care.
The Billie Jean King Foundation was established in 1998 to inspire humankind in the pursuit of excellence, regardless of race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, or whether the individual is mentally or physically challenged. Billie Jean King created the Donnelly Awards in honor of Diane Donnelly Stone and Tracey Donnelly Maltby, both of whom have grown up with type 1 diabetes. Both long-time associations of Ms King and executives in King's DuPont WORLD TEAMTENNIS (WTT) League operation, the Donnelly sisters earned full-athletic scholarships to Big Ten Universities.
Now to this month's activity:
A Bike Outing
Sooner or later, your diabetic child or teenager is going to want to take a bike trip. Since riding a bike can be fairly moderate to somewhat hard to hard exercise, depending on the speed and duration of the ride, you'll need to take some beforehand precautions to ensure that your child doesn't experience low blood sugars during the ride.
Riding a bicycle is one of the most fun activities in a youngster's life. It's excellent exercise for their muscles, heart, and lungs. It'll also help keep their weight in better control, and it's just plain fun to get outdoors with friends.
A quick 5-minute bike ride to a friend's house is going to burn less blood sugar than an hour ride. Always have your child test their blood before starting out and follow your child's physician's advice on exercise, or show him/her the chart below and ask for their instructions.
Where your child injects insulin is also a factor when riding a bike. An injection in a leg will get into the blood stream very quickly since leg muscles are primarily used in bike riding. It may be better to inject in the arm, instead.
| Type of Bike Ride | Blood Sugar Level | Kind of Snack |
| slow bike ride, less than 30 minutes | less than 70 | Treat for low blood sugar
| | 70 to 120 | 1 carbo (bread/starch) PLUS 1 protein |
| 120 to 180 | 1 carbo (bread/starch OR fruit) |
| 180 to 240 | may not need a snack |
| 240 or above | no snack - check with your doctor about extra tests to be made before the ride |
| Moderate riding speed for 1 hour | less than 70 | Treat for low blood sugar |
| 70 to 120 | 1 carbo (bread/starch) PLUS 1 protein |
| 120 to 180 | 1 carbo (bread/starch OR fruit) |
| 180 to 240 | may not need a snack |
| 240 or above | no snack - check with your doctor about extra tests to be made before the ride |
| Fast riding for 1 hour | 70 to 120 | 1 carbo (bread/starch) PLUS 1 protein |
| 120 to 180 | 1 carbo (bread/starch OR fruit) |
| 180 to 240 | may not need a snack |
| 240 or above | no snack - check with your doctor about extra tests to be made before the ride |
Table based on information from supplied by the Joslin Diabetes Center for the Joslin Diabetes Quick & Easy Cookbook.
Be sure that you know exactly where your child will be riding and set a time for their return. That way, should they encounter difficulties, you'll know where to start your search. Make sure your child is wearing proper footwear and comfortable clothing that can be layered should the weather change (i.e. a sweater tied around the waist that could be put on later if it gets chilly, etc.).
Now, what to make for that lunch by the lake, stream, park, meadow, or special rock that your biker is heading for. We suggest a tortilla wrap sandwich, a plastic bottle of cold spring water, a small plastic self-sealing bag of crunchy baby carrots, a piece of fruit, and back-home treat in the form of a low sugar chocolate chip cookie. Amounts can be adjusted to fit your child's food plan. For example if your child's individual meal plan is of a higher calorie level, then he/she could have 2 tortilla wraps. Also good to tuck into their bag as extra carbo snacks as needed are juice-in-a-box, trail mix, or a granola bar. Be sure your child can recognize the signs of low blood sugar and knows to treat it quickly.
All recipes have been kid-tested and can easily be carried in a light-weight backpack or knapsack.

Ham and Cheese Tortilla Wrap
(makes 1 serving)
| 1/2 | teaspoon (2.5 ml) reduced-fat mayonnaise |
| 1/2 | teaspoon (2.5 ml) mustard |
| 1 | 7-inch (17.5 cm) 98% fat-free flour tortillas |
| 2 | green leaf lettuce leaves, washed and crisped |
| 1 | thin 1-ounce (30 g) slice 97% fat-free ham |
| 1 | 1-ounce (30 g) slice reduced-fat Swiss cheese |
| 2 | tablespoons (6 g) alfalfa sprouts |
- Combine mayonnaise and mustard. Spread evenly over one side of the tortilla. Top with two lettuce leaves.
- Lay ham and cheese on top of lettuce. Top with alfalfa sprouts. Roll up and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill until ready to leave for the bike ride.
| Per serving: | 27 calories (30% calories from fat), 17 g protein, 8 g total fat (4.5 g saturated fat), 26 g carbohydrate, 2 g dietary fiber, 35 mg cholesterol, 782 mg sodium |
| Diabetic exchanges: | 2 lean protein, 1 1/2 carbohydrate (bread/starch) |
Also in your backpack: fill a small self-sealing plastic bag with 7 baby carrots or 1 small carrot, peeled and cut into small carrot sticks (1 vegetable exchange). Add a piece of fruit -- 1 small apple, 15 grapes, or 1 small pear (1 carbohydrate/fruit exchange), and a small plastic bottle of chilled water.
Save these cookies for a snack when you arrive back home to have with a glass of cold skim milk:
Low-Sugar Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies
(makes 3 dozen)
Recipe Courtesy of Hershey's Kitchens
| 1/2 | cup (100 g) margarine, softened |
| 1/4 | cup (48 g) sugar |
| spoonable sugar substitute to equal 1/2 cup sugar |
| 1 | large egg |
| 1 | teaspoon (5 ml) vanilla extract |
| 1 | cup (140 g) all-purpose flour |
| 3 | tablespoons (16 g) Hershey's Cocoa |
| 1/2 | teaspoon (2.5 ml) baking soda |
| 1/8 | teaspoon (0.6 ml) salt |
| 2 | tablespoons (30 ml) skim milk |
| 1/3 | cup (56 g) Hershey's Mini Chips Semi-Sweet Chocolate |
- Heat oven to 375°F (190°C), Gas Mark 5.
- In a medium bowl, beat butter, sugar, and sugar substitute until well blended. Add egg and vanilla; beat well.
- Stir together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. Add alternately with milk to butter mixture, beating until well blended. Stir in mini chocolate chips.
- Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 7 to 9 minutes, or just until set.
- Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
| Per 3 cookies: | 158 calories (54% calories from fat), 2 g protein, 10 g total fat (2.3 g saturated fat), 16 g carbohydrate, 1 g dietary fiber, 18 mg cholesterol, 173 mg sodium |
| Diabetic exchanges: | 1 carbohydrate (bread/starch), 2 fat |
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