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Reviews > Growing Up Again: Life, Loves, and Oh Yeah, Diabetes ~ Mary Tyler Moore

A fascinating look at life with diabetes from a classy lady

When Tony was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, one of the first things I wanted to read was Mary Tyler Moore's book on the subject.  I wasn't sure why at the time, but I later figured out that, after the accelerated course on diabetic care we had just been through, it would be nice to read what a friend of the family had to say.  This, of course, was delusional.  No one in my family has met Mary Tyler Moore, and at present it seems unlikely that we will.  Even so, as a child of the Seventies, her spot in my memory is not far removed from that of a family friend who would drop by once a week, and I wanted to see what she had to say.

Mary Tyler Moore, for anyone not familiar with with her work, is an American actress who is known for, among other things, appearing on The Dick Van Dyke Show and The Mary Tyler Moore Show.  In 1969, while she was between these shows, she was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at the age of 33.  She follows her narrative of dealing with the disease against the backdrop of her successful television, stage and movie career.  And she relates how, in 1984, she was invited to become the international chairman of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation (JDF), forerunner to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF).  She now occupies a unique position as a patient who gets to sit down to talk with the top diabetes researchers of the world.

One of the most striking features of Mary Tyler Moore's story is her insight into the generations of diabetes patients before her time and those yet to come.  She relates the story of her friend, John McDonough, former JDRF chairman of the international board, and how his Grandfather died of diabetes complications before the dawn of insulin therapy.  John McDonough himself used a crude form of insulin therapy, and Ms. Moore started her treatment as part of the generation who could roughly check their blood glucose through urine testing. She goes on to follow the advent of in-home blood testing and continuous glucose monitoring, and finishes with outlooks on an eventual cure.  It's fascinating stuff.

The book bog down a bit in a couple of consecutive chapters near the end.  It's nice that Mary Tyler Moore thinks of her love of dance and animals as the basis of who she is, but compared to the fascinating and information-rich content of the rest of the book, these chapters (“I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can” and “The Other Element”) can be skipped to no great loss.

The final quarter of the book is given over to a real treasure trove of condensed information about the current state of diabetes care, research and development, along with a “Diabetes Resource Guide.” This was a pleasant surprise that gives value to the book past the first reading.  This book is definitely a recommended read.

Note: All Ms. Moore's proceeds from Growing Up Again: Life, Loves, and Oh Yeah, Diabetes go to benefit the JDRF.


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