Like many families, ours spent the past weekend watching the new Pixar movie Turning Red – not once, not twice, but four times.
The story follows 13-year-old Meilin Lee, a teenager who is navigating the chaos of adolescence, a slightly overbearing mother, and that somewhat inconvenient tendency to turn into a giant red panda when emotionally provoked. Turning Red is a joyful ride with representation at its core as Pixar’s first Asian-led animated film.
But one other small but mighty detail sets this film apart for our family: the appearance of diabetes technology
As the mother of a 4-year-old with Type 1 diabetes, it's important to me that my daughter, Brooklyn, is exposed to characters in pop culture that she can relate to from a young age. Historically, chronic illnesses like diabetes have hardly had their moment in the spotlight. The disease is often negatively mischaracterized or poorly stereotyped. Even less common is seeing representation of the medical technology that people with diabetes rely on daily to stay healthy — and many people without diabetes don’t even realize that this technology exists.
After movie trailers revealed that diabetes technology would have a quick cameo, Brooklyn couldn't contain her excitement, counting down the days until the film premiered on Disney+. Our family pulled out the popcorn and threw a Friday night “party” to watch it together, and Brooklyn squealed with joy at the sight of what appears to be a continuous glucose monitor (CGM) visible on one of the character’s arms – the same medical device she wears to monitor and help control her diabetes.
When Brooklyn was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at 18 months old, her doctor recommended that we use a Dexcom G6 CGM – a small, wearable device that constantly monitors glucose levels without the need for painful fingersticks. As an infant, she wasn't able to verbalize it when she felt that her blood glucose levels were too high or too low – an incident that can be life-threatening and require immediate action. With the Dexcom G6 CGM, I’m able to monitor her glucose levels in real-time as it shares her readings directly to my smartphone.
As the parent of a child with diabetes, this device is a game-changer
And seeing it on the big screen meant the world to our family and many others, I'm sure. Part of what made it really special wasn’t just its appearance, but its subtle inclusion. Instead of creating some sad storyline or dramatizing this character’s diabetes — like so many films have in the past — the child was simply there, a normal kid in school, with some extra assistance from a medical device as she goes about her day (albeit with a giant panda as a classmate). This small moment felt like a huge acknowledgement that children like Brooklyn have been truly seen.
Advancements in medical technology have given my daughter the freedom to be a kid
As her mother, it’s given me peace of mind. She feels empowered wearing her CGM when she sees other people living each day with the same disease and still thriving. Representation of diabetes in pop culture needs to catch up to Brooklyn and her many brave friends with diabetes, and I’m thrilled that Turning Red was a big, furry step forward.
