There may be at least one person you know with diabetes.  I know a few.  But it really hits close to home when it is a family member who has it or some form of it.

Honestly, a few years ago I was not concerned with diabetes, nor concerned that I was on that road to acquiring it.  I would consider myself a healthy person.  I engage in physical activity, my weight is considered to be “normal,” lab results for fasting blood sugars always within normal limits.  However, it was only until recently that my non-existing concerns for diabetes finally became a reality.  I myself was not diagnosed with it, but I learned that my dad acquired prediabetes.  His laxed attitude towards his prediabetes diagnosis tinkered on that fine line of being one hemoglobin A1C result away from being diagnosed as type 2 diabetes; the thought of him getting type 2 diabetes scares me because of the complications that go along with poorly controlled diabetes.  Therefore, I made it my responsibility for us to learn as a family, my mom included, on what we can do to prevent him from getting type 2 diabetes, and be healthy overall.  Going through this learning process we learned that there are three main types of diabetes, plus prediabetes, and the various symptoms that are associated with this condition.

Types of Diabetes

Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus (TIDM)

TIDM usually diagnosed in children and young adults.  Only 5% of people with diabetes have type 1.  In T1DM, the body does not produce insulin because the organ that produces it, the pancreas, is no longer capable.  Insulin is a hormone that is needed to change sugar, starches and other foods into energy needed for daily life.  T1DM needs the help of insulin therapy, via daily injections with insulin pens or syringes or an insulin pump, and other treatments to manage blood sugars.

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM)

T2DM is the most common form of diabetes.  In T2DM, your body does not use insulin properly, which is called insulin resistance.   At first, your pancreas makes extra insulin to make up for it. Over time, the pancreas is not able to keep up and cannot make enough insulin to keep your blood glucose at normal levels, and the cells that need the glucose are starved for energy.  Moreover, having high blood sugars overtime can damage your eyes, nerves, kidneys, and the heart.  T2DM can be treated with lifestyle changes, such as increasing physical activity, oral medications i.e. pills or insulin.

Gestational Diabetes (GDM)

This occurs when a there is a presence of high blood glucose (sugar) during late pregnancy.  The prevalence of GDM is 9.2%.  Many women who have never had diabetes can get gestational diabetes.  There is no known cause; however, the theory involves the placenta and the hormones that help the baby develop.  The hormones can interfere with how insulin functions in the body, which is called insulin resistance.  Insulin resistance makes it difficult for insulin to be used in the body.  Since GDM occurs in the latter part of the pregnancy, the baby’s body has already formed; therefore, GDM does not cause the same birth defects that can be seen in babies whose mothers already had diabetes.  However, poorly treated GDM can harm the baby.  Since the pancreas is producing additional insulin that is not being used by the cells, blood sugars are still increased.  Insulin does not pass through the placenta, but any extra blood sugars can; giving the baby high blood sugar levels too.  The baby’s pancreas will make extra insulin to get rid of the extra blood sugars.  Since the baby is getting more energy than it needs for growth and development, the extra energy gets stored as fat; resulting in macrosomia or “fat” baby.  These babies are at risk for shoulder damage during birth, breathing problems.  As children, they are at risk for obesity, and as adults, there is a risk for developing T2DM.

What about Prediabetes?

Most people who develop type 2 diabetes, almost always have prediabetes. This occurs when glucose (sugar) levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be diagnosed as diabetes.  Having prediabetes puts you at greater risk for developing T2Dm and heart disease.  If you have prediabetes, you should be checked for type 2 diabetes every one to two years.

The common symptoms of diabetes are:

• Urinating often
• Feeling very thirsty
• Feeling very hungry – even though you are eating
• Extreme fatigue
• Blurry vision
• Cuts/bruises that are slow to heal
• Weight loss – even though you are eating more (type 1)
• Tingling, pain, or numbness in the hands/feet (type 2)

These symptoms are typical of diabetes.  However, some people with type 2 diabetes have symptoms so mild that they go unnoticed.  Furthermore, there are no clear symptoms for prediabetes, and may only show some symptoms.  For women with gestational diabetes, they may have no symptoms at all.  The important message is to keep informed, know your body, be healthy and test your blood sugars.  As we go through this journey as a family, my dad is becoming more proactive, testing normal for his fasting blood sugars every morning, becoming more physically active with my mom, and slowly eating a little bit healthier.

What’s not included in the $245 billion dollar cost of diabetes

1) UNDIAGNOSED DIABETES: As of 2011, 27% of people with diabetes didn’t know they had the disease. Diabetes is known as being the “silent killer”, because it can remain undetected in the body for 10 or more years. Silent and dormant are not the same thing. In fact, during the time that diabetes remains untreated and uncontrolled, it can wreak havoc on vital organs in the body, causing irreparable damage.

To measure the impact undiagnosed diabetes has on our economy, scientists reviewed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey and concluded that undiagnosed diabetes accounts for about $18 billion in health care costs annually.

2) PREDIABETES:  In addition to the 18.8 million Americans that have been diagnosed with diabetes, and the 7 million Americans whose diabetes has yet to be detected, there is a much larger problem brewing under the surface. It currently has an estimated $25 billion effect on our nation’s healthcare system, and it is just a precursor for what’s to come. It’s prediabetes!  There are currently 79 million Americans with the condition, of which 90% don’t know they have it.  As many as 83% of people with prediabetes will develop type 2 diabetes unless those affected take significant steps to lose weight, eat right and exercise more to improve their health.

“We are only beginning to grasp the full economic impact of diabetes,” said George Huntley, chairman of the board for the ADA. “For the first time we can demonstrate that healthcare costs begin to rise long before diabetes has developed. Both of these early conditions are associated with significant increases in the use of healthcare services and expenses. Yet with aggressive intervention, both can be averted or at the very least delayed.”

All together,  if we added the estimated cost of undiagnosed diabetes and the cost of prediabetes to the total,  we may find that the true annual cost of diabetes in our country could exceed $288 billion.

Here’s the bottom line, the diabetes epidemic, if not stopped has the power to bankrupt our entire healthcare system. One in five health care dollars in the U.S. is going to care for the 18.8 million people with diagnosed diabetes.  Right now 8.3% of the population has diabetes (diagnosed and undiagnosed). Imagine what will happen if the predictions are accurate and 1 in 3 American adults (33%) have diabetes in 2050.

Here’s the good news, 80% of type 2 diabetes is preventable with lifestyle change. If we can help identify those who are at-risk, then provide them with the tools they need to succeed, we can create an alternative, healthier future. The first step to fighting diabetes, is helping to create awareness!

Click to find out what risk factors may increase your risk for type 2 diabetes!

Read full article: “American Diabetes Association Releases New Research Estimating Annual Cost of Diabetes at $245 billion“

Sources:

(n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/diabetes-statistics/

Alexandria, V. . Retrieved from http://www.diabetes.org/for-media/2013/annual-costs-of-diabetes-2013.html

Retrieved from http://diabetes.webmd.com/news/20090508/costs-are-high-from-undiagnosed-diabetes

Retrieved from http://m.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/pre-diabetes-costs-nation-25b-annually

All month long, we will be debunking myths and sharing a few of our favorite tidbits on our blog, Facebook, and Twitter. We will be adding more tidbits to our list throughout the month, so check back frequently to see the next Diabetes Awareness fact.

We need your help to spread the word! So please feel free to share these tidbits with your family and friends.

Happy Diabetes Awareness Month,

From our Skinny Gene Family to yours!

Diabetes Awareness Month Facts

Tidbit #1: 

Did you know the term ‘juvenile diabetes’ is a dated and misleading term since children, teens, and ADULTS can get type 1 diabetes? The proper term is ‘type 1 diabetes’.

Today, on their 1 year birthday, we want to THANK BLUE HEEL SOCIETY for all that you do for our diabetes community!

ABOUT BLUE HEEL SOCIETY

By: T.R. Moore, CCO

The Blue Heel Society was launched on the premise that anyone, anyone at all, could effectively advocate for diabetes given the right “platform”.  All it takes is a wearing a blue pair of shoes, whether heels, boots, flops, or sneakers.

Our logo is the combination of the IDF Blue Circle, and a high heel shoe.  The symbol was created to demonstrate how people who live with, love, or care for anyone with diabetes, regardless of the type, are fabulous, and while that shoe is beautiful and stylish, it can often be challenging, actually downright hard to walk around in it all day…everyday. No matter who you are, old or new, type 1 or type 2…you can rock a blue shoe. In everyday scenarios, in advocacy proper or hosting a dinner club for your local community….we wear the blue shoes to change how people see diabetes.

Today is our first birthday and wow, what a year it has been….with the likes of a rockstar pediatric endocrinologist blogging for us, a reggae music legend’s celebrity chef nephew collaborating his efforts with our loyal followers, and having a rising NASCAR superstar blogging about wearing his blue shoes, demonstrating just how vast a population of people really just understand how easy and effective this advocacy campaign really is.

We launched our most important pieces of advocacy work yet recently. Our Luminary program. We turn the advocacy over to you….the individual and support people, who do it *their* way, bringing the Message & Mission of the Blue Heel Society to local Community’s in true grassroots style.

Please visit their website or facebook page for more information about the Blue Heel Society.

Last year (2010) we posted 6 myths about type 2 diabetes from an article in SELF/Nutrition Data. Well, it’s a new year and we ‘ve got some more myths to add to our list that need a little busting.

15 Myths about Type 2 Diabetes

Myth 1: Diabetes is not that serious of a disease.

Fact: Diabetes causes more deaths a year than breast cancer and AIDS combined.  Two out of three people with diabetes die from heart disease or stroke.

Myth 2: If you are overweight or obese, you will eventually develop type 2 diabetes.

Fact:  Being overweight is a risk factor for developing this disease, but other risk factors such as family history, ethnicity and age also play a role. Unfortunately, too many people disregard the other risk factors for diabetes and think that weight is the only risk factor for type 2 diabetes.  Most overweight people never develop type 2 diabetes, and many people with type 2 diabetes are at a normal weight or only moderately overweight. 

Myth 3: Eating too much sugar causes diabetes. 

Fact: No, it does not.  Type 1 diabetes is caused by genetics and unknown factors that trigger the onset of the disease; type 2 diabetes is caused by genetics and lifestyle factors.  Being overweight does increase your risk for developing type 2 diabetes, and a diet high in calories, whether from sugar or from fat, can contribute to weight gain.  If you have a history of diabetes in your family, eating a healthy meal plan and regular exercise are recommended to manage your weight.

Myth 4: People with diabetes should eat special diabetic foods.

Fact: A healthy meal plan for people with diabetes is generally the same as a healthy diet for anyone – low in fat (especially saturated and trans fat), moderate in salt and sugar, with meals based on whole grain foods, vegetables and fruit.  Diabetic and “dietetic” foods generally offer no special benefit. Most of them still raise blood glucose levels, are usually more expensive, and can also have a laxative effect if they contain sugar alcohols.

Myth 5: If you have diabetes, you should only eat small amounts of starchy foods, such as bread, potatoes and pasta. 

Fact: Starchy foods are part of a healthy meal plan.  What is important is the portion size.  Whole grain breads, cereals, pasta, rice and starchy vegetables like potatoes, yams, peas and corn can be included in your meals and snacks.  The key is portions.  For most people with diabetes, having 3-4 servings of carbohydrate-containing foods is about right.  Whole grain starchy foods are also a good source of fiber, which helps keep your gut healthy.

Myth 6: People with diabetes can’t eat sweets or chocolate.

Fact: If eaten as part of a healthy meal plan, or combined with exercise, sweets and desserts can be eaten by people with diabetes.  They are no more “off limits” to people with diabetes than they are to people without diabetes. 

Myth 7: You can catch diabetes from someone else.

Fact: No.  Although we don’t know exactly why some people develop diabetes, we know diabetes is not contagious.  It can’t be caught like a cold or flu.  There seems to be some genetic link in diabetes, particularly type 2 diabetes.  Lifestyle factors also play a part.

Myth 8:  People with diabetes are more likely to get colds and other illnesses. 

Fact: You are no more likely to get a cold or another illness if you have diabetes.  However, people with diabetes are advised to get flu shots. This is because any illness can make diabetes more difficult to control, and people with diabetes who do get the flu are more likely than others to go on to develop serious complications.

Myth 9: If you have type 2 diabetes and your doctor says you need to start using insulin, it means you’re failing to take care of your diabetes properly.

Fact: For most people, type 2 diabetes is a progressive disease. When first diagnosed, many people with type 2 diabetes can keep their blood glucose at a healthy level with oral medications.  But over time, the body gradually produces less and less of its own insulin, and eventually oral medications may not be enough to keep blood glucose levels normal.  Using insulin to get blood glucose levels to a healthy level is a good thing, not a bad one. 

Myth 10:   If I’m diabetic, I shouldn’t eat fruit.

It’s true that fruit contains carbohydrates and can affect blood sugar. But fruit can be a very healthy part of your diet, even if you are diabetic. Fruit contains valuable nutrients and fiber and has a milder effect on blood sugar than other types of sweets.  A healthy diabetic meal plan should contain two or three servings of whole fruit each day. Whole fruit is a better choice than processed fruits like applesauce, fruit cocktail, dried fruits, or fruit juice.

Myth 12:   Diabetics should eat a low carbohydrate diet.

Up until 1994, the American Diabetes Association recommended a diet of about 60% carbohydrates for all Type 2 diabetics. Some diabetics can achieve good blood sugar control on this type of diet. However, many studies have shown that low-carbohydrate and/or low-glycemic diets can be very effective in helping diabetics lose (or maintain) weight and improving insulin sensitivity.  The ADA now acknowledges that lower carbohydrate diets may be helpful in some patients and recommends that diets be individualized.  Read more about the glycemic index.

Myth 13:   All Type 2 diabetics need to take insulin or other anti-diabetic drugs for life.

Not so!  Even if you are currently using insulin or anti-diabetic medications to manage your Type 2 diabetes, you may be able to reduce or even eliminate your need for drugs by losing weight, exercising, and sticking to your diet plan. (No-one should discontinue any medications without consulting their physician).

Myth 14:  If I’m using insulin or antidiabetic medications, I can eat what I want.

Taking medications is not a substitute for eating right, exercising, and maintaining a healthy weight.  Do everything you can to manage your diabetes with healthy lifestyle habits–even if you are taking diabetes medication. The medications will work better, you’ll need to take less of them, and you’ll stay healthier in the long run.

Myth 15:  People with “prediabetes” (or a family history of Type 2 diabetes) always eventually end up with full-blown Type 2 diabetes.

Not at all. If your doctor has told you that your blood sugar levels are “borderline” or that you have “prediabetes,” this is a wake-up call!  Get serious about losing weight, eating a healthy diet, and exercising and you can very likely avoid developing diabetes.  Having a family history of Type 2 diabetes also doesn’t mean that you will also get the disease. You’re in control!

…..

If you have been diagnosed with prediabetes and are interested in preventing the developing of type 2 diabetes, a member of our nutrition team would like to speak with you! Click here for a free session!

I didn’t know when I lived there, but November in Chicago is unique. I’m not just talking about frigid temperatures, the “lake effect” at 7 a.m., or even the mad rush for holiday shopping on the Magnificent Mile. 

What I’m referring to is a different type of “conversation”.  Something I haven’t heard or seen since I left.

You see on November 1^st, after the pumpkins were removed and the opened candy wrappers scattered in the streets were swept way, the city of Chicago turned from orange to BLUE. 

When I lived there in the year 2000, National Diabetes Awareness Month not only had a presence, it had a voice.  Billboards, posters, signs on the back of buses driving through downtown, and radio and TV spots all helped to “start the conversation” about diabetes awareness. 

It was the first time I saw the “conversation” at work…

People would see the ads, start asking questions, and during the conversation you could see the bridging of the gap between the “haves” (with diabetes) and the “have nots” (without diabetes).  With greater understanding comes empathy and eventually action.

People with diabetes, caring for a child or spouse with diabetes, or trying to prevent diabetes had the opportunity to share their daily struggles.  While the “have nots” listened and found ways to relate to what was being explained, they began to empathize. Once imagining themselves on the “other side”, the “have nots” would begin problem solving and asking how they could be of some help. The conversation dissolves the associations between the “haves” and the “have nots”, and replaces it with one, health-minded community.

I moved to San Diego in December of 2004. While other people anxiously awaited the opportunity to dress their little goblins up for Halloween, my excitement was brewing to see how the city and communities would celebrate and give recognition to Diabetes Awareness Month.  I waited and waited, and nothing happened.

I thought… maybe I live in the wrong part of town? Nope!  Listen to the wrong radio stations? Nope!  I started to wonder..

“Is the conversation about Diabetes Awareness on mute, or is it just not there?”

We tend to talk about things we find to be important or relevant to our lives. Well, I’d hope diabetes would make the list of what is considered important.  It’s the fastest growing disease in our history. It affects every race, gender, and age. It’s the 5^th deadliest disease, and diabetes and prediabetes together cost the economy over $218 billion a year.

The problem (diabetes) has not gone away since 2000, it has only gotten worse, but the awareness campaigns are seemingly nonexistent.

If Diabetes Awareness Month is not widely promoted, what message are we sending about its level of importance in our society, or about the 81 million Americans that have or are at risk of having this disease?

With projections like 1 in 3 children (1 in 2 minority children) will have diabetes in their lifetime, and the number of people with diabetes tripling by 2050, we have to become more involved.

It’s time to take the conversations surrounding Diabetes Awareness Month off MUTE!!

When I vocalized my disappointment about the amount of attention that Diabetes Awareness Month was getting last year, a friend asked me, “What exactly are you looking for? People know what diabetes is. Maybe that’s why awareness isn’t such a big deal here.”

My response was long and emotional, but in summary my point was this… there isn’t much awareness because people don’t know what diabetes “is”. If people fully understood this disease and how it affects, not just the people around them, but their OWN life, November would be BLUE in every city and state in the country.

There are lots of great diabetes communities and online chats out there. I know the conversation about diabetes exists in these areas. What I’m talking about is “opening the doors” to these diabetes communities and letting the general public join the conversation. 

Join the conversation by focusing on honoring, understanding, supporting, and sharing.

• Honoring those who have lost their lives to diabetes.
• Understanding the different types of diabetes
• Supporting our friends and family and helping them to manage their diabetes. 
• Sharing the at risk factors with others and encouraging friends to take the necessary steps to prevent type 2 diabetes.

If diabetes affects everyone in our community (which it does) we should all be part of the conversation and part of the solution!

To start us off, we’re reposting this article from SELF/Nutrition Data.

6 Myths about Type 2 Diabetes

November is Diabetes Awareness Month and with the number of adults and children with Type 2 Diabetes growing every year, I think we’ve all become more aware of this condition than we used to be.  Nonetheless, myths and misunderstandings about this largely preventable condition abound.

Myth #1   If I’m diabetic, I shouldn’t eat fruit.

It’s true that fruit contains carbohydrates and can affect blood sugar. But fruit can be a very healthy part of your diet, even if you are diabetic. Fruit contains valuable nutrients and fiber and has a milder effect on blood sugar than other types of sweets.  A healthy diabetic meal plan should contain two or three servings of whole fruit each day. Whole fruit is a better choice than processed fruits like applesauce, fruit cocktail, dried fruits, or fruit juice.

Myth #3   Diabetics should eat a low carbohydrate diet.

Up until 1994, the American Diabetes Association recommended a diet of about 60% carbohydrates for all Type 2 diabetics. Some diabetics can achieve good blood sugar control on this type of diet. However, many studies have shown that low-carbohydrate and/or low-glycemic diets can be very effective in helping diabetics lose (or maintain) weight and improving insulin sensitivity.  The ADA now acknowledges that lower carbohydrate diets may be helpful in some patients and recommends that diets be individualized.  Read more about the glycemic index.

Myth #4   All Type 2 diabetics need to take insulin or other anti-diabetic drugs for life.

Not so!  Even if you are currently using insulin or anti-diabetic medications to manage your Type 2 diabetes, you may be able to reduce or even eliminate your need for drugs by losing weight, exercising, and sticking to your diet plan. (No-one should discontinue any medications without consulting their physician).

Myth #5  If I’m using insulin or antidiabetic medications, I can eat what I want.

Taking medications is not a substitute for eating right, exercising, and maintaining a healthy weight.  Do everything you can to manage your diabetes with healthy lifestyle habits–even if you are taking diabetes medication. The medications will work better, you’ll need to take less of them, and you’ll stay healthier in the long run.

Myth #6  People with “prediabetes” (or a family history of Type 2 diabetes) always eventually end up with full-blown Type 2 diabetes.

Not at all. If your doctor has told you that your blood sugar levels are “borderline” or that you have “prediabetes,” this is a wake-up call!  Get serious about losing weight, eating a healthy diet, and exercising and you can very likely avoid developing diabetes.  Having a family history of Type 2 diabetes also doesn’t mean that you will also get the disease. You’re in control!

…..

If you have been diagnosed with prediabetes and are interested in preventing the developing of type 2 diabetes, a member of our nutrition team would like to speak with you! Click here for a free session!