Seven-year-old Luke Nuttall has type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease that affects as many as <a href="index.php?page=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww2.jdrf.org%2Fsite%2FDocServer%2FKW-T1D_Factsheet.pdf%3FdocID%3D1024" target="_blank" target="_blank">3 million Americans</a> and has no cure.
Seven-year-old Luke Nuttall has type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease that affects as many as 3 million Americans and has no cure.
Frank Wisneski/Blackdogsrule.com
Although no two days are alike, Luke's blood sugar tends to drift above or below range (below 75 and above 150) between five to eight times a day. When this happens, Jedi can smell the change in chemical composition.
Although no two days are alike, Luke's blood sugar tends to drift above or below range (below 75 and above 150) between five to eight times a day. When this happens, Jedi can smell the change in chemical composition.
Frank Wisneski/Blackdogsrule.com
In over four and a half years, Luke has never woken up on his own to notice low blood sugar, which is why he relies on his parents to wake up three times a night, and on Jedi for the alerts, which often come before his monitor's.
In over four and a half years, Luke has never woken up on his own to notice low blood sugar, which is why he relies on his parents to wake up three times a night, and on Jedi for the alerts, which often come before his monitor's.
Frank Wisneski/Blackdogsrule.com
"I started a <a href="index.php?page=&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FSavingLuke%2F" target="_blank" target="_blank">Facebook page</a> to educate my friends, family and community about what we were going through," Dorrie Nuttall, Luke's mother, said. "It helped people understand that he would not outgrow it and that type 1 diabetes can't be fixed by a pill."
"I started a Facebook page to educate my friends, family and community about what we were going through," Dorrie Nuttall, Luke's mother, said. "It helped people understand that he would not outgrow it and that type 1 diabetes can't be fixed by a pill."
Frank Wisneski/Blackdogsrule.com
"He looks like a normal boy. On the outside, nobody knows. It's an invisible disease," Nuttall said. "He plays baseball and soccer, but he also wears a pump and has his finger pricked eight to 10 times a day. People would never know that unless we share his story."
"He looks like a normal boy. On the outside, nobody knows. It's an invisible disease," Nuttall said. "He plays baseball and soccer, but he also wears a pump and has his finger pricked eight to 10 times a day. People would never know that unless we share his story."
Frank Wisneski/Blackdogsrule.com
Luke and Jedi have been together for three and a half years, but Jedi still requires constant training and doesn't replace the human aspect of being the parent of a child with type 1 diabetes.
Luke and Jedi have been together for three and a half years, but Jedi still requires constant training and doesn't replace the human aspect of being the parent of a child with type 1 diabetes.
Frank Wisneski/Blackdogsrule.com