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HELENA- The onset of youth diabetes came as somewhat of a shock to the Grasmick's when their son Adam was diagnosed nearly a year ago.

His mother Shannon explained, "His body doesn't produce insulin anymore so this pump is what is pumping insulin in. You can do it by shots, but it's a lot easier on the pump."

At age 6, Adam now has to monitor his blood sugars and eat accordingly. Since his diagnosis, his mother has had to to adjust afternoon snacks and meals to make sure they aren't overloaded with carbs, which trigger his sugars.

His foods must be weighed and calculated to see if he needs to add insulin through a diabetic pump he will wear for life.

"At the beginning it was really time consuming . There was a lot measurements, a lot of baggies to make sure that the portion was controlled," Shannon noted.

And that has always been the case for Adam's father who is also a diabetic. So far, Shannon and her other three children show no signs of the disease. Those signs include frequent urination, and excessive thirst.

As for Adam, he says it doesn't bother him much. He checks his own sugars at least three times a day usually right before meals.

"I feel really shaky, my leg, when I'm low, and I just don't feel good when I'm high," Adam said.

Adam carries around a kit which includes a cell phone in case he needs to call for help. But for the most part, he knows what to do to adjust his own sugars.

His blood sugar target is 150, and Adam said, "And then I just drink juice if I'm below like 90. If I'm in the 90's I just have like cookies, or M&M's."

And if he goes above 200, he must trigger the pump and take insulin.

As a mother of a diabetic child, Shannon's advice is to keep in close touch with your doctor: "Good communication with your doctor and a dietician."