Battling Diabetes

What exactly is diabetes?

The best layman’s definition I’ve ever read is from the National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse:

“Diabetes is a disorder of metabolism—the way our bodies use digested food for growth and energy. Most of the food we eat is broken down into glucose, the form of sugar in the blood. Glucose is the main source of fuel for the body.

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A great blog post.

Sometimes people with diabetes forget that they are a person, not just a person with diabetes. I found a wonderful blog entry by Eric Lagergren in the Diabetes Self Management Blog.

Eric describes the hierarchy of his needs and how diabetes has affected his thinking, not just his life. It was an interesting post, complete with thoughts on how other veteran diabetics percive his writing and attitude towards his condition.

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Frightening Statistics For African Americans

According to National Health Interview Studies conducted from the early 1960’s to the early 1990’s, nearly three times the number of African Americans have diabetes compared to the early studies. This does not account for undiagnosed cases. Many African Americans who do not have health care, much like other races who are in the lower income brackets, do not have access to proper health care. Due to this, the number of diabetes cases are possibly double the current number. For every white person who has been diagnosed, approximately one and a half more African Americans are being diagnosed.

One in four African American women over the age of 55 has diabetes. Twenty five percent of African Americans between 65 and 74 have been diagnosed with diabetes. Out of all diabetic Americans, African Americans are more likely to develop complications than their white counterparts.

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Diabetes is characterized by abnormally elevated blood glucose levels over a period of time. Insulin is either produced in too low amount (Type 1) or not used properly (Type 2). Insulin is the principle hormone that helps the cells take up glucose. Since the amount is higher than normal, it’s possible to take different tests that detect them.

One of the standard tests is called a ‘Fasting Plasma Glucose’ (FPG) test. The patient foregos eating for at least 8 hours (usually nothing after midnight). The test is administered by drawing blood and measuring the results. A normal fasting glucose level will be lower than about 99 mg/dL.

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One of the possible tragic consequences of diabetes is the effects the disease has on various organs and body functions. They cover a wide range of systems and conditions. Fortunately, most are treatable and/or manageable.

Hypoglycemia

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