Korea has a wonderful community of people with type 1 diabetes and their family members. Most of them use Naver cafes as meeting points, but a few are also active on social media such as facebook and instagram.
KST1D
One of the most inclusive ad helpful organisation is the Korean Society of Type 1 Diabetes – KST1D. Not only do they support their members and help them with any diabetes queries, they also work with other organisations on new policies, check for accurate media representation and stay on the forefront of technological developments in the diabetes world. It is thanks to their efforts that cgms are available in Korea and largely funded by the national health insurance.
KST1D also organises camps or online lectures to inform newly diagnosed people and their families and work with researchers and universities to improve diabetes management information among medical staff.
They are active on Naver cafe, facebook and via their website, which now also has an English version.
- Naver Cafe Sugartree: https://cafe.naver.com/t1d
- Website: http://www.kst1d.org/
- Facebook: 한국환우회
Whole People Team
Many people in Korea don’t feel comfortable being open about their diabetes, but there are more and more people who actively show their diabetes life on social media.
In 2020, several athletes and sport enthusiasts came together and formed the Whole People Team, with the aim to share their sport, their exercise and diet regime and their diabetes management. Showing that any sport is possible despite diabetes can inspire others to be active and healthy.
They are active on instagram under @wholepeopleteam_korea and are always happy to answer questions.
Social Media
There are more communities in Korea for people with type 1 diabetes. They are mainly active on Naver cafe and instagram. For non-korean speakers, Naver cafe can be opened via the chrome browser and then content is automatically translated.
On Instagram, the hashtag #1형당뇨 will bring up instagrammers sharing their diabetes life.
On Facebook, there is a small English speaking Type 1 community within a closed group. To access it, search Type 1 Diabetics in Korea and answer the membership questions.
Welcome to T1D Korea! 