Hi Everyone, this week we handle Myth Number 2: Diabetes only happens to old or really overweight people, or those with a family history-FALSE

This is a favorite of mine because I hear it all the time, usually from a patient who just cannot believe they really have Diabetes.

Now, it is true that many people with high sugars are very overweight or obese. They also are more likely to have a family member with diabetes. It is also true that your chances of developing diabetes increase as you get older. HOWEVER, it is very (more…)

Hi Everyone!

This week we start addressing some of the common myths floating around about diabetes. In my practice I have found that wrong information is responsible for a number of cases of “Diabetes gone bad.” I apologize to those of you who will find this information very basic, but starting from the ground up always seems like the best way to go.

This first idea, “Diabetes comes from sugar”, is one of the most widely (more…)

Happy Friday everyone. Here are some cool thinking happening in the Diabetes world as well as some interesting resources:

The New OneTouch UltraLink Wireless Meter

Via LifeScane.com

For those who don’t already have one or haven’t heard of it yet:

“The NEW OneTouch UltraLink Meter wirelessly sends your test results to your MiniMed Paradigm® insulin pump, making bolus dosing easier and more accurate.

Some advantages of the UltraLink:

• Wireless communication of test (more…)

Just a quick up to note that we’ve quickly added customizable glucose ranges as it was highly requested. We quickly implemented a simple and basic solution that will work for the majority of people.

You specify a range between what you consider low and what you consider high (i.e: 70-150), that then becomes your in-range value. Anything below is consider low and anything above is high.

You can easily see what your (more…)

Another Thanksgiving come and gone, lots of food happily consumed and delicious beverages had by all. I hope everyone had a safe and responsible Thanksgiving with friends and family.

It is usually a tough thing for a diabetic to be completely in control on Thanksgiving day, so much temptation! But thats what we Bolus for right?

In fact, I think maybe Thanksgiving should also carry a second name, maybe “Super Bolus Day” or “Happy Fast Acting Insulin Day”?

In any case, we though it might be cool to get some aggregated stats and see how all the SugarStats users did on Thanksgiving (or at least from those who remembered to record ).

Overall, the stats community stats were fairly good:

Sugar Average: 142 mg/dL
Lowest: 52 mg/dL
Highest: 469 mg/dL

In the end I hope the day was enjoyable (and delicious) for all and that no one ended up in the ER for hyperglycemia.

Someone posed a great question to me the other day and it really got me thinking.  Not really so much about the question, but more about the flood of answers that popped up in my head.

The question was:

“What would make me log on sugar stats versus writing info on a paper log, which I don’t do”

While sometimes I tend to think the advantages of online tracking and sharing obvious, it is a reality that to some people, maybe even many, it isn’t.  There are hundreds of millions of diabetic people out there, many not tech savvy all and some who completely hate technology altogether. 

But even if it is obvious to some, it is a great question with a variety of answers. A few of which stick out for me personally:

• Data Aggregation, Trends and Graphs – You can write entries in a log book, but the log book isn’t going to take that data and create useful statistics, trends and graphs out of it.

• A Variety of Input Methods – Other than a pen or pencil that is.  Inputting sugar readings or medication Via Web, Email, Twitter etc, depending on what you use daily, could turn out to be quite convenient for you.

• Sharing. Virtual Viewing, Anywhere – You can only show a logbook to those you bring it to.  Having it online lets you share it, privately or publicly, to whomever you want to anywhere in the world.  The days of needing the schedule a doctors visit which ends up being 10min long as he briefly glances of your likely incomplete log book.  This brings in a new level of flexibility and collaboration with your health-care providers and physicians.

• Social Support – Similar to the point above, having the social support around your progress is a huge factoring in your diabetic health.  With new online resources come out, sites like TuDiabetes.com where people can congregate, share experiences and get motivation to take control and keep it. Plus we’re in the process of adding even more features

• Conscious Awareness – To me, this is one of the main reasons.  Really, you can’t fully know your status or progress unless you’re tracking various bits of info over time. Having to keep these bits of info in mind, daily, brings it to your attention.  Ever heard of “Out of sight, out of mind?”, well that can apply to your diabetes health too.

    Keeping it in mind helps you “keep things” in mind, you tend to make better decisions (About food, things you do etc). Being conscious about it helps you be aware of the things you do daily that affect your diabetes.  Granted this can also happen with writing down your stats in a log book, though having a online solution might fit better into your daily lifestyle.
  

Those are a few of the prominent thoughts I had. Though when it comes down to it, it is really about finding the tools and solutions that work and fit best FOR YOU.  We could really implement every feature under the sun (Trust me, we won’t) but if it doesn’t fit in your particular lifestyle or is something you don’t like using then none of that matters.

In the end what we’re trying to do is creating new and creative tools that people can use daily to improve and monitor their diabetes that fit in this modern age era which we live. All in all I have to say it is great to see so many advancements on so many fronts happening. It is exciting to see things evolve, for the industry and individuals alike.

A cool little project has popped up called Diabetes365. Originally started by Beth of insearchofbalance.wordpress.com, other diabetes bloggers like Bernard of www.bernardfarrell.com have joined in too.

What is Diabetes365? In Bernards words:

“Diabetes365 is an idea that I got from Beth of insearchofbalance. She started her Diabetes365 photo project a few days ago and I couldn’t think of a better way to inform people of what it’s like to live with diabetes 365 days a year.

The idea behind this Diabetes365 project is that I’ll take one picture every day of the year. I’ll post it to the flickr Diabetes365 pool and blog about it briefly.

Would you like to take part in Diabetes365? You can join the flickr pool provided that you post a picture there each day (or wait a few days and post several pictures, one per day). Each picture must be tagged with diabetes365 and titled with the date taken and which day of your year of photos it is. If you’d like to blog your photos, feel free to do that also.”

Are you part of flickr and want to find out more? Go to the Diabetes365 Project Flickr Group or check out his first post.

The New York Times has posted a very interesting 4-page article I think is worth takin a look at. It goes into the dangers of neglecting the other important factors for surviving diabetes, such as cholesterol.

They showcase a story of a man who was only concerned with his glucose levels and pretty much neglected everything else but ended up paying the price with a stroke. There is also a video up.

“Nearly 73,000 Americans die from diabetes annually, more than from any disease except heart disease, cancer, stroke and pulmonary disease.

Yet, largely because of a misunderstanding of the proper treatment, most patients are not doing even close to what they should to protect themselves. In fact, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, just 7 percent are getting all the treatments they need.”

Take a look: Looking Past Blood Sugar to Survive with Diabetes