A southern suburbs man with type 1 diabetes said he wanted to ride from Perth to Sydney to raise awareness about the disease.
Seville Grove resident Neil McLagan was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when he was just 17.
Type 1 diabetes was a condition in which the immune system destroys pancreas cells that produce insulin and it was responsible for about 10 per cent of all diabetes cases.
It was one of the most common chronic childhood conditions according to Diabetes Australia.
Mr McLagan said he got the idea to ride across Australia to raise awareness of the illness while watching the 5500-kilometre Pacific Wheel Race from Perth to Sydney.
“I thought, ‘I could do that’,” he said.
He said he wanted to follow the Nullabor route through the south of the country.
“I want to raise funds for the Telethon Type 1 Family Centre, they support children living with it and that’s close to my heart,” he said.
While a long-haul ride might be a struggle for a person with diabetes Mr McLagan said a new diet he was on would help him through.
He said he had tried regular diabetes diets but he had never been comfortable with them.
“You have the up and down effect – high one day and low the next,” he said.
“It really affects your quality of life especially if you’re a child and parents are in charge of looking after you.”
He said a new low-carb diet containing about 30-grams of carbohydrates a day or about as much as a slice of bread had improved his quality of living and would help him through the trip.
Mr McLagan said he wanted to attempt the ride in about one year.
A Facebook page to tell the story about Mr McLagan’s new diet and his exercises could be found at www.facebook.com/MyLowCarbDiabetes.
A GoFundMe page was set up to raise money for the ride and could be found at www.gofundme.com/3jmmra8.
Always seek advice from your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding any medical condition before changing your diet.
