what's hot

march 2004

When someone is diagnosed with diabetes, they are bombarded with things they must do to care for themselves. When the person diagnosed is your child, spouse or significant other, you may become a caregiver and have to become an expert in this disease. Thinking about becoming part of any organization that raises funds and educates others on diabetes may be far from your life at that moment, but we are here to tell you that becoming part of the community will not only benefit the person with diabetes today but may well give researchers the clue to stem or even cure the disease that now affects 18.2 million people in the U.S. which is 6.3% of our population. One out of every 400 to 500 children and adolescents has type 1 diabetes. In 2002 diabetes was the sixth leading cause of death listed on U.S. death certificates. This does not include incidents where diabetes was the underlying cause of death. Overall, the risk for death among people with diabetes is about 2 times that of people without diabetes. The risk for developing long-term side effects is significant for those of us with diabetes. About 65% of deaths among people with diabetes are due to heart disease or stroke. 73% of adults with diabetes have hypertension. It is also the leading cause of new cases of blindness among adults 20-74 years of age. It accounts for 43% of all new cases of end-stage renal disease. 60%-70% of people with diabetes have mild to severe forms of nervous system damage. Almost one third of people with diabetes have severe periodontal disease and therefore loss of teeth. The total cost of diabetes to our economy is $132 billion a year. Is there any question as to why we want a cure and we want everyone to know as much as they can about this disease?

Those of you who read these What's Hot articles know that I have type 1 diabetes and that it has caused some significant long-term complications for me. Having open-heart surgery in one's 40's certainly made my children look at me differently even though I had exercised every day for years. In my diabetes clinic I listened to people whose complications made their lives even more difficult. The person I remember the most was a twenty-something young woman who was a double amputee and who continued to smoke. At that young age when most people are full of themselves this person was forlorn and as depressed and angry as any patient I had ever had. It made the hours of setting up this clinic worthwhile and made me more willing to give up my free time to join other boards whose purpose was to help those of us with diabetes. It did take some time for me get involved, but that involvement helped me to take off the denial blinders that had plagued me in caring for myself, and to see the importance of the 24/7 medical care that I knew in my head I needed. First I want to share with you what you need to do to make sure you are as healthy as possible when and if a cure is found. Take your blood glucose levels and be a partner in your care. If you find out that your levels rise after certain foods, modify your diet. If you need to lose weight as a type 2 diabetic, get serious and get help. Start an exercise program. You know that exercise is an integral part of my life. I have spent so much time on a treadmill or running on a path that the annual cardiologist's appointment is just routine. The grafts on my heart are healthy and I keep plugging. I know that the exercise I do protects both my heart and keeps my diabetes under better control. What can anyone do that gives one so much of a pay back for a small part of the day? Are you still trying to decide the how, where and why of exercise? Please read our articles in the Exercise section of this monthly magazine. There you will find reasons to exercise and suggestions about which exercise you may like. It also has articles about motivation and even gives you the specifics on how to know if you are in your target zone and what that zone is. Make doctor's appointments yearly as directed by your primary care physician. Each January we go to see our gynecologists, ophthalmologists, endocrinologists, dentists, and cardiologists as well as our internists to coordinate our treatment. If yours is as bright and caring as mine, you will answer many questions and may wind up taking some tests that you really need and didn't think of. My internist calls the results, "base line" results for future comparison. I know that she is making sure that my heart is still functioning, my kidneys are fine and that my bone density is normal. Many times other doctors suggest these tests but my internist makes sure that they are done. Thanks. Know your heath care team by name. One thing you can count on with diabetes is that you will need to speak to these people at various times. When you develop side effects or a symptom of the flu these are the people who will know you and your history. No one wants to reinvent the wheel each time you call for help. Know how to cook for yourself. If you need a cookbook, go to our bookstore or just go to our web site and download ideas for entertaining and recipes for every day. Read the nutritional guidelines on our What's Hot articles and learn what an exchange looks like. We get many questions about exchanges and always tell people that these are weights of the various foods you eat. Just because you have been told to eat pasta, that doesn't mean that you can eat what is put before you at your favorite restaurant. One exchange is 1/2 cup. Vary your diet so that you do not get bored, and so staying healthy remains an easy task. Know your rights as a person with diabetes. We just wrote an article on the subject in our What's Hot section. Read! Every month we publish abstracts from journals about current research. You must be the expert on diabetes. I can't tell you how many times I've had to stop a nurse from giving me a medication in hospital which was inappropriate for me to take. I can't say the doctor was happy to have to make an extra visit to my room to correct it or tell me how he was going to control my diabetes during recovery or surgery with that treatment, but I want the best for me and I want to make sure that I come through that surgery with the least complications from the surgery. Finally, after you have decided to make sure that you are here for the cure, it's time for you to make sure that there is a cure for all of us who have diabetes. This is easy as all it takes is your time and perhaps a check to your favorite charity that supports treatment, research and education. Each year the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation and the American Diabetes Association have many fundraisers. When you see one of these written up on the Style page of your newspaper, plan to attend. You will have a great time while helping others to realize the extent of diabetes and its implications in your community. Here we not only have Walks for the Cure, but Kiss the Pig nights and celebrity Roasts. Our daughter ran in a marathon in Bermuda, getting sponsors to give donations in my name. Look for the EXPO coming to a city close to you in the future. Help support a camp for children with diabetes, and support that or become a volunteer. Volunteer whenever and where ever you can Join the ADA and JDF. Your yearly fees will not only get you a magazine but will get you information about legislative pushes for the passage of bills. Lobby for law changes that discriminate against people with diabetes in your state. This costs you nothing, but really helps. Also contact your representatives and senators about issues that impact all of us. The ADA has an e-mail that will come automatically and all you have to do is click your mouse a few times to make your representatives know that you want them to support legislation that will help us move toward the cure. I, for one, also send thank you e-mails to people who support us even if they are not of my political party. These Legislative Alerts also inform me about what is happening in Washington. When someone tries to rescind funding, I want to know. After all there are just so many dollars for medical funding and there are many diseases out there which need them. After you have decided to give your time and effort, please give a donation. I have given to the national organizations, but also have given to hospitals which have proven to me that they understand how to care for people with diabetes when they are patients. I wish these contributions could be grand, but they are what we can afford. When I write these checks I just plain feel good. If ever I wanted someone to find the cure, it is now. I am at an age and years of having type 1 diabetes that curing diabetes for me would make a significant difference in my life and in others around me and so I do put my "money where my mouth is." When I was first diagnosed with diabetes more than 20 years ago, my physician told me that there would be a cure in 5 years. Later as a major researcher in the field he wrote to thank me for a book I wrote with his hospital's name on the cover. He shared that he was deep into research now that the cure was complicated but that he would never give up. I continue to think about him and his brilliant wife on a regular basis and hope that they continue to be driven to find out about diabetes. I hope that others feel as they do and know that they do. PLEASE TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF AND LOOK AROUND TO SEE HOW YOU TOO CAN BE A PARTNER FOR THE CURE. BSP