American Diabetes Alert Day

I’ve talked about kidney disease in an earlier blog and discussed its close relationship with diabetes. This week I’ll concentrate more directly on diabetes and ways we can identify our risk in getting diabetes and healthy steps we can take to prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes or ways we can minimize its affect.

First, a few facts. Diabetes impacts over 30 million Americans or about 10% of our population. Surprisingly, about 7 million of us don’t even know we have it. The older we get the more likely we are to get diabetes, but our ethnic background may also increase our chances of getting the disease. Consider the following percent of people with diabetes depending on ethnic group:

• non-Hispanic whites: 7.4 percent
• Asian Americans: 8.0 percent
• Hispanics: 12.1 percent
• non-Hispanic blacks: 12.7 percent
• American Indians and Alaska Natives: 15.1 percent

As you can see, your ethnic group has a big impact on your chances of getting diabetes.

Diabetes is a killer! Almost 80,000 Americans die of diabetes; it is the 7^th leading cause of death in the U.S. and has a huge impact on the overall health of those living with diabetes.

• Adults with diabetes are significantly more likely to die from a heart attack or stroke.
• More than a quarter of all Americans with diabetes have diabetic retinopathy, which can cause vision loss and blindness.
• Each year, nearly 50,000 Americans begin treatment for kidney failure due to diabetes. Diabetes accounts for 44 percent of all new cases of kidney failure.
• Each year, diabetes causes about 73,000 lower limb amputations, which accounts for 60 percent of all lower limb amputations (not including amputations due to trauma).

This month I lost a long-time friend and fellow scouter to the ravages of diabetes. Most of us know someone who has died of diabetes or is living with it.

So, the question is, can we do anything about this deadly disease? There are two types of diabetes, type 1 and type 2. Type 1 diabetes usually occurs in children and young adults, and there are ways to live with type 1 diabetes but there is no cure. Type 2 diabetes is preventable and there are steps you can take to lesson or eliminate its effects on your health. The first step is to see if you have the disease or are at risk to contract it.

March 23^rd is American Diabetes Association Alert Day. This one-day “wake-up call” informs the American public about the seriousness of diabetes and encourages all to take the diabetes risk test and learn about your family’s history of diabetes. You can take the test here. I took the test and, because of my age and especially because of a history of diabetes in my family, I have some risk of contracting diabetes.

There are steps we can take right now that will lower our risk of contracting diabetes. By

• Eliminate sugar and refined carbs
• Work out regularly and avoiding a sedentary lifestyle
• Make water the primary beverage
• Maintain a healthy weight
• Quit smoking
• Eat a high fiber diet
• Optimize Vitamin D levels
• Take natural herbs, such as curcumin and berberine, that increase insulin sensitivity

Now I know this sounds like the same advice we get from our doctor no matter what is ailing us. The important thing here is that rather than just making us feel better these steps could prevent the onset of diabetes. It is especially important to maintain a healthy weight. Obesity and diabetes have a strong correlation . . . losing weight when you’re overweight can have a huge impact on preventing or controlling diabetes.

You can even find a certified diabetes educator who can help you find practical solutions that fit your personal needs. Click here to find a Diabetes Education Program near you.

In reading about diabetes and being involved with different diabetes groups over my years in public policy, I have been struck with the lack of focus and resources we allocate to the prevention and treatment of diabetes. We have greatly reduced the deaths attributed to AIDs and we have many, many fund raisers and money spent on research for breast cancer, but diabetes kills more people in the U.S. than AIDs and breast cancer combined. It’s an area that would benefit from more government funds. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) should evaluate its allocation of resources to ensure these resources are focused where they could have the most impact on our country’s health. I’m sure this reevaluation would result in more resources devoted to the study of the prevention of and possible cures for diabetes.

I encourage all of you to take some time and evaluate your risk for diabetes and become smarter about things you can do to lower your risk. I know that’s what I’m going to do.

Best, Thair