When Indy Racing League contender Charlie Kimball, 25, takes to the track at Homestead-Miami Speedway on Oct. 2, he’ll take along a piece of equipment unique to his car and his condition — a blood glucose monitor.

Kimball is the first and only licensed driver in the IRL with diabetes, a metabolic disease in which sugar exceeds normal levels in the blood because the body does not produce enough of the hormone insulin to regulate sugar, or the body becomes resistant to insulin’s effects, according to the American Diabetes Association.

Type-1 diabetes, usually diagnosed in childhood, is caused by low insulin production, resulting in the need for insulin injections. Type-2 diabetes is caused by the body failing to use insulin properly.

Kimball was diagnosed with type-1 diabetes in 2007 at age 22, forcing him to stop racing in the middle of the season. Kimball said in a phone interview on Sept. 16 that after consulting physicians and other diabetes experts, he returned to racing in 2008, placing second in his first race back in the cockpit.

“I proved to myself that I was the same driver with diabetes as I was before I was diagnosed,” he said. “It gave me the confidence to go forth as a competitor.”

He said it wasn’t too difficult to convince racing officials that he was still fit to compete.

“It wasn’t a tough sell. I expected it to be a lot harder,” he said. “All drivers have to have an annual physical. I took my blood sugar logs and food logs and talked them through my routine. They were pleased to have me prove that diabetes didn’t slow me down.”

Nova Nordisk, a Danish pharmaceutical company, now sponsors Kimball.

“It’s a little atypical to be diagnosed at age 22. Part of what I do with Nova Nordisk is to help educate the public on diabetes awareness and management by attending seminars and conferences,” Kimball said. “I was at a conference and met a woman who was diagnosed at age 45, so it does happen.”

Dreams of racing

The California native is now based in Indianapolis. He began racing go-karts at age 9 and knew he wanted a career in racing. He even gave up an opportunity to attend Stanford University to chase his high-speed dreams.

“It was something I discussed with my parents,” he said. “Racing cars in Europe was a better option for me than going to college.”

Kimball said learning he had diabetes, and that his driving career could be in jeopardy, was a shock.

“It was pretty scary. The biggest thing I was worried about was racing. My whole life revolves around racing and my first question for my doctor was, would I be able to get back in the racecar?” he said. “If he had told me I couldn’t, I would have looked for a second opinion.”

Kimball said he found a medical ally in Dr. Anne Peters at the University of Southern California, who is known for treating world-class athletes.

He said he manages his condition by carefully timing his meals, eating properly, staying hydrated and taking his medications. He said having a blood-sugar level that’s too high or too low on the track could have dire consequences.

“The challenge with diabetes is keeping your blood sugar regulated. Too high and your reaction time gets slow, too low and it’s hard to focus and you get sluggish and in a severe case would lead to unconsciousness,” he said.

“Either of those happening would have a negative impact behind the wheel.”

To keep tabs on his blood sugar while driving, Kimball has a wireless monitor that gives him constant updates mounted on his steering wheel. If his glucose level drops, he has a bottle of orange juice with a tube running into his helmet and to his mouth.

Kimball competes in the Firestone Indy Lights series, which he described as being just a level below the “major league” drivers who race in the schedule that includes the Indianapolis 500. He is in third place in the championship standings and the Homestead race is the last of the season. He said his goal is to move up to the next level.

“It could happen as soon as next year. I just need to maximize the chances I have,” he said.

Kimball said he wants to be an example to diabetics that they can lead normal lives even with the disease.

“The biggest point I want to make … .is that diabetes doesn’t have to slow you down,” he said. “I’m doing what I love and with a good routine and discipline you can do anything you want to, even drive a racecar at more than 200 miles per hour.”

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