The happy and active six-year-old loves doing cartwheels and playing with her sister Lacey, 22 months.

But at least twice a day, Isabella, who has type one diabetes, needs to test her blood sugar and injects herself with insulin - including while at school.

Isabella was diagnosed with type one diabetes about two years ago and her parents Nathan Keel and Tegan Alexander have spent many sleepless nights caring for her as they learned about the condition.

"I'd test her at 2am and be awake for hours wondering if her sugar would be high or low and making sure she is okay ... we would treat that if it was low, otherwise consequences from that can be serious," Mr Keel said.

"When diagnosed, it is obviously difficult for everyone involved - because she went from having a normal, everyday life to now having daily injections."

Mr Keel said Isabella's great uncle Kim Anderson was diagnosed with diabetes when he was 21.

When Isabella started showing the same symptoms as Kim, the family took her to a doctor.

"She was drinking about 2.5 litres of water a day, which is strange for a kid - and at the time she was four years-old. She lost of couple of kilos and was going to the toilet several times during the night. She was also very thirsty," he said.

Isabella is a student at Horsham West Primary School, where the school staff must help her follow a exclusive plan.

"She will have a lunch packed for her and they make sure she eats at a certain time. She has a set amount of carbohydrates per meal. The school has a process that they would need to follow if she drops below or above the blood glucose level," he said.

Ms Alexander said she allowed Isabella to consume some sugary treats occasionally.

"Isabella can eat whatever she wants - we just have to know what carbs she eats to manage her insulin," she said.

"She can go to a party and eat birthday cake. We just allow her to have a bit. We don't want her missing out in such terms. She is still a kid, after all."

Technology has helped the family manage Isabella's condition. "Continuous glucose monitoring" allows Isabella's parents to keep track of her glucose levels.

A sensor is implanted in Isabella's muscle tissue every week, which then reads her levels and connects to her parent's phone via bluetooth technology.

"The technology side of it is only going to get better. That helps take off stress, because initially we lost of a lot of sleep," Mr Keel said.

Ms Alexander said Isabella started injecting insulin herself in March.

"We were at the farm with our family and she showed her great aunt and since then, she has been wanting to do it herself," she said. "She does a fair bit by herself and she does recognise when she is low on sugar."

DESPITE the prevalence of diabetes, it remains among the most misunderstood medical conditions.

Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high.

It develops when the body can not make enough of a hormone called insulin or cannot use the insulin the body produces.

Diabetes is a serious and complex condition which can affect the entire body.

It is among the fastest growing health concerns in Australia.

About 80 people in Victoria are diagnosed with diabetes every day and about 125,000 Victorians are unaware they have the condition, research suggests.

Wimmera Health Care Group diabetes educator Anneika Hart said misconceptions about the condition were very common.

She said three different types of diabetes - being type one, type two and gestational diabetes - added to the confusion.

"Some people think once you are on insulin, you are a type one diabetic. That is not necessarily the case. That is an autoimmune condition, so it does differ from some of the other forms of diabetes," she said.

Mrs Hart said people needed to be aware of the symptoms and consult a medical professional when they are were identified.

These symptoms include excessive thirst, feeling tired, unexplained weight loss, mood fluctuations and going to the toilet often - and especially waking overnight to use the toilet.

Mrs Hart said in many cases, people might also notice infections or wounds taking longer to heal, which is more commonly experienced among type two diabetics.

She said the symptoms for diabetes were often confused with other conditions.

"It can really difficult to determine," she said.

"Rather than relying on the internet, it is important to speak to a healthcare professional who can evaluate the symptoms."

Mrs Hart said people of all ages could be diagnosed with diabetes.

"It doesn't discriminate - those who are at a higher risk, or others ... anyone can be diagnosed with diabetes. I think it is important to realise that no one is safe from that," she said.

Mrs Hart said it was important to support people with diabetes.

"We need to give them adequate support and the resources they would need," she said.

"For the type two population, we are seeing a lot more people getting diagnosed at a younger age and having that awareness."

She said there was a stigma around people having the condition.

"That doesn't help the patients. They then try to hide the fact that they have the condition, which stems from the misunderstanding of the disease," she said.

NEARLY 333,000 Victorians have been diagnosed with diabetes, latest figures reveal.

Wimmera Primary Care Partnership research from 2016 shows that the Hindmarsh and Yarriambiack shires had the highest rate of diabetes in the Wimmera.

About 7.6 per cent of the Hindmarsh shire's population has diabetes, Yarriambiack 6.8 per cent, West Wimmera 5.9 per cent and Horsham Rural City 5.5 per cent.

These rates were higher than the regional Victoria average, which stood at five per cent.

The highest number of diabetes diagnoses were registered in Horsham, with 1206 cases, followed by 533 cases in Yarriambiack shire.

Type two diabetes was the most commonly diagnosed form of diabetes across the Wimmera. Cases were highest in Yarriambiack and West Wimmera shires with 90.4 per cent and 90 per cent of the total diagnosis respectively.

Wimmera Health Care Group diabetes educator Lisa Hobbs said there had been an increase in type two diabetes across the state, whereas the population diagnosed with type one diabetes has been comparatively stable.

Mrs Hobbs said statistics revealed the number of diabetes cases were higher in regional areas, with 7.3 per cent of the population diagnosed with the condition.

The metropolitan population had a lower rate, with 5.8 per cent.

Mrs Hobbs said being "socially disadvantaged" contributed to the higher rates in regional areas. She said the numbers were also higher in males, the elderly and the Aboriginal population.

She said more awareness was needed to educate people about the condition.

"We need to advocate the misconception around the complexity of the disease and promote it through an 'eat well and be active' perspective," she said.

While you're with us, you can now receive updates straight to your inbox twice weekly from the Wimmera Mail-Times. To make sure you're up-to-date with all the news from across the Wimmera, sign up below.