Beth Reynolds, whose 13-year-old son Peter Baldwin died as a result of undiagnosed type 1 diabetes, says she has helped save 23 people by sharing his story and the major warning signs. Reynolds, 47, a leadership and management coach from Cardiff, made a promise to her son that his death "would not be in vain."
Peter displayed "absolutely all" of the major warning signs known as the four Ts – toilet, thirsty, tired, thinner – but flu-like symptoms at the time "masked" his diabetes, Reynolds told PA Real Life.
What Happened to Peter
On New Year's Eve 2014, Reynolds took Peter to a GP, who identified a chest infection and prescribed antibiotics. Over the next 24 hours, Peter's condition worsened. On January 1 2015, Reynolds called 999, and a first responder "took one look" at Peter, put an oxygen mask on him, and pricked his finger to say with almost certainty that he had type 1 diabetes and was in diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA).
DKA is a life-threatening medical emergency where the body breaks down fat when it does not have enough insulin, causing harmful chemicals called ketones to build up and make the blood dangerously acidic, according to Diabetes UK. Peter was rushed to hospital on New Year's Day 2015, fell into a diabetic coma, and died on January 6 2015.
The Warning Signs
Reynolds described Peter as a "super happy child" and the "most amazing young man" with a "bright future." With no family history of diabetes, Peter had "no issues and no long-term health conditions" and "hardly missed any school due to sickness." The first symptom Peter displayed was increased thirst while on a school trip to Germany in mid-December 2014.
Reynolds said she still has text messages from Peter where he remarked "I'm really thirsty, mummy." After returning from the trip two days before Christmas, Peter had a cough and cold that progressed to being "very flu-like." Reynolds explained that the classic symptoms – toilet, thirsty, tired, thinner – were all present, but could be explained away: "He'd lost a bit of weight because he had a growth spurt in puberty, he was drinking more because he was unwell, he was tired because he was unwell and he was going to the toilet more because he was drinking more because he was unwell."
Raising Awareness
Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune condition affecting more than 350,000 people in the UK, according to Diabetes UK. It occurs when the body's immune system attacks and destroys insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas, meaning they can't produce any insulin. It cannot be prevented and there is currently no cure; treatment is lifelong and involves insulin delivered by injection or pump.
In 2023, Reynolds organised a national campaign called Rewrite Peter's Story, sending a box of resources to "every single GP practice in Wales" to put the warning signs of type 1 diabetes on the top of their radar. "We'd have had a 24-hour headstart had the GP just pricked his finger," she said.
Colette Marshall, chief executive at Diabetes UK, told PA Real Life: "A type 1 diabetes diagnosis should never start with a medical emergency. Yet every year, hundreds of UK families face the heartbreaking reality of seeing their children reach crisis point before anyone recognises the condition. This World Diabetes Day (on November 14), we're urging everyone to learn the 4Ts and share the signs with others."
Reynolds said she and her family have counted 23 people they have "saved" by sharing the warning signs of type 1 diabetes. "I've got to cling on to 13 years and 27 days of memories of Peter," she said. "I talk to Peter's sister and brother about him all the time... and I tell them that if you've got a voice you've got to use it, because Peter can't speak for himself anymore. So I'm doing this for him."
