A New Tool to Measure Quality of Life for Swedish Teens with Type 1 Diabetes

Living with type 1 diabetes involves far more than managing blood sugar. Young people navigate school, friendships, family relationships, and their own feelings about their condition—all while managing daily insulin and monitoring. Healthcare providers need ways to understand how diabetes affects all these areas of a teen's life, not just their medical numbers.

The Mind Youth Questionnaire (My-Q) was created to help healthcare teams get a fuller picture. By asking teens about their experiences, worries, relationships, and how they feel about their bodies and their treatment, the questionnaire can reveal where young people might need extra support.

Researchers translated and tested the My-Q with 166 Swedish-speaking youth ages 10-19 with type 1 diabetes. The process followed international translation guidelines to ensure the questions were culturally appropriate and clearly understood.

The final Swedish version includes 38 items organized into nine categories: social impact, parent relationships, diabetes control perceptions, responsibilities, worries, treatment satisfaction, body image and eating behavior, stigma, and mood. The researchers also included three questions specifically about stigma, recognizing that discrimination or shame can significantly affect young people's well-being.

Statistical testing showed the questionnaire performs reliably—it consistently measures what it's intended to measure across all nine areas. Healthcare providers can trust the results when using this tool with Swedish-speaking teens.

With a validated Swedish version now available, diabetes clinics in Sweden and other Swedish-speaking regions have a standardized way to assess quality of life. Instead of relying only on clinical measurements like A1C or glucose readings, providers can use the My-Q to start conversations about how teens are really doing emotionally and socially.

These conversations can help identify teens who are struggling with specific areas—such as worry about their condition, body image concerns, or feeling stigmatized—so healthcare teams can connect them with the right resources or support.

The My-Q now exists in multiple languages: Dutch, English, Spanish, and Swedish. This expansion makes it possible for more healthcare systems worldwide to measure and support the quality of life of young people with type 1 diabetes in a consistent, evidence-based way.

Source: Journal of patient-reported outcomes. Evidence type: PubMed indexed literature. Type1Cure is an information and intelligence hub, not a medical advice service. This article summarizes published research and does not provide diagnosis, treatment, or personal medical guidance. Always talk to your own care team before changing anything about your Type 1 diabetes management.