Before Insulin, the only option for Type 1 diabetics, was the starvation diet. To control their blood sugar they were limited on their food in take. This could prolong death by up to 2 years. 2 years was the longest a diabetic could go without insulin. January 1922 was the first time insulin was given to a human. Dr. Banting went into a hospital room full of children with Diabetes most of them unconscious. Administered insulin to everyone in the room. By the time he administered to the last child the first one woke up. The room went from one of hopelessness to a room of celebration and joy. The child in this picture is a Type 1 diabetic child shown before insulin and after. Source
