A word of caution however, when reading a diabetes blog is that checking out the source of any information posted to insure it is accurate. Most blogs will limit who can post information as well as the type of information being posted. A moderated diabetes blog offers the best information as it is scrutinized prior to being posted to insure its accuracy. Many times a log sponsored by a drug company will focus information surrounding the products produced or sold by the company. This type of information, while usually accurate, may sway an individuals to seek treatments they do not necessarily require.

While it is up to the doctor to make any treatment recommendations or medication changes, undue influence can put pressure on some patients to seek other opinions. Being careful about the origination of information found on a diabetes blog is critical to continued health.

Support In Dealing With Diabetes Is Critical

Many times when patients are told they have diabetes, they are too stunned to ask the right questions of their doctor. After getting home and discussing their condition with their family, questions start to come up and it may be another month before they see the doctor again. By researching a diabetes blog they, and the family may be able to find the answers to their questions without waiting until the next doctor’s visit.

Information about diabetes is readily available from many sources, including the American Diabetes Association. A diabetes blog may also report related information on subjects such as high blood pressure and triglycerides to help the diabetic patients understand the role the disease plays on the entire system.

Many people can describe their symptoms and the treatments used to help them get on with their lives on a diabetes blog. This information can help others with similar problems talk to their physician about what procedures may work for them. In order to find a diabetes blog that a patient can trust, they can go through the diabetes association or a nurse’s directory.

Source:Eat This, Not That! It's the Best of Food, It's the Worst of Food

Risk Factors

Many pregnant women with gestational diabetes lack any apparent symptoms, but for others, doctors generally recommend early diabetes testing after noticing few significant symptoms such as being overweight or obese, family history with type 2 diabetes, over 25 years, multiple conception, personal history of gestational diabetes during earlier pregnancy and belonging to specific ethnic group like American Indian, Alaska native, Asian, African American, etc.

Complications

If left untreated, gestational diabetes may lead to a wide array of complications for both the mother and the child. These may include macrosomia, a condition characterized by oversized baby; birth defects; increased risk for miscarriage; stillbirth, etc. In addition, the baby may develop a condition during which the blood glucose level of the baby falls down very rapidly following birth. The condition is referred to as hyperinsulinemia.

Essentially there are two types of gestational diabetes testing – (1) oral glucose tolerance test and (2) three hour glucose tolerance test.

The Oral Glucose Tolerance Test

This diabetes testing is also referred to as glucose challenge screening. This diabetes testing belongs to the routine tests during pregnancy. Typically it is done during 24th to 28th weeks of pregnancy, or earlier only when you are marked with any risk factors for developing diabetic condition. During the test, you need to consume glucola, a drink consisting of 50g of glucose. The doctors take blood sample from your body after one hour to test the degree of glucose processing in your body.

The Three Hour Glucose Tolerance Test

This diabetes testing is done to either confirm the presence of diabetic condition or to rule out the possibility. This test is only done if you have obtained an unusual reading on the one hour test. For this test to be done, you need to fast for 10 to 14 hours prior to the test. Similar to oral glucose tolerance test, you need to consume drink rich in glucose. But the drink consists of 100g of glucose instead of 50g of glucose. Your blood sample is collected before you consume the drink. This is known as fasting glucose level. Additionally, blood sample is again collected following one, two and three hours gap.

Source:Eat This, Not That! It's the Best of Food, It's the Worst of Food

As with any disease affecting millions of people, there are a lot of sources for information and some of it may be convoluted to the point of being unusable. The diabetes association can present the facts of any new wide-spread claims about anything dealing with diabetes. One of the debates currently raging is the use of the glycemic index in devising a diet plan for those with diabetes. Allegedly, the glycemic index offers information about not only the amount of sugar in foods, but how fast it is converted into sugar in the bloodstream.

While many individuals as well as healthcare professionals see the benefit of calculating sugar intake with the index, detractors claim it is providing diabetics with a false sense of security when they are devising diet plans. The diabetes association presents the information so that people can make their own choices.

Answering Questions About Living With Diabetes

Persons newly diagnosed with diabetes often turn to the diabetes association with questions about the disease, especially if the answer they received from their doctor are difficult to understand. The diabetes association, using their own staff of doctors and staff experts, can answer many questions, especially questions from those that are diagnosed later in life.

There are also numerous local chapters of the diabetes association to help people cope with the needs of the disease and to receive support when the disease progresses. Many find the first years of living with diabetes tolerable and, while requiring some adjustments to diet and exercise, they begin to be concerned when other health issues begin to arise. Unsure about where to go for information, they can contact the diabetes association for professional answers.

Many insurance companies that offer information on diabetes also work with the diabetes association to insure patients have all the correct information they need to make the right choices for their lifestyle and diet. They can also help families of diabetics cope with the necessary changes.

Source:Eat This, Not That! It's the Best of Food, It's the Worst of Food

Diabetic Supply Kit

Diabetic supply kits may come with slightly different items, but there will be several essential things always included. Since managing this disease involves careful monitoring of your blood sugar level, alcohol swabs, a lancet and a glucometer will be present. Alcohol swabs will clean your skin thoroughly before taking a blood sample. This step may seem small, but it drastically lowers your chance of infection. The lancet is simply a sharp little tool that pierces the skin to produce a droplet of blood. Sometimes the kit offers lancets that prick the arm or the finger, depending on which area of the body is easier for the patient. The drop of blood is then placed on a strip that will be inserted into the glucometer. This device will determine the amount of sugar in the blood and display a number for the patient to see. Most glucometers have a built-in memory, which will better generate a daily, weekly or monthly view of average blood sugar readings. These readings will enable a diabetic to correcltly evaluate the amount of insulin needed to maintain optimum health.

Insulin, of course, is a necessary supply for diabetics, but this must be obtained from a doctor’s prescription. There are several ways to take insulin and if you need to inject it, your diabetes supply kit must contain syringes, needles or an insulin pump. It may be a good idea to ask your doctor or pharmacist about your individual needs.

Another way to monitor the sugar level in the body is by checking your urine. Therefore, urine test tablets and strips should be in the diabetes supply kit. Another condition that is common among diabetics is foot trouble, especially sores that don’t heal well and are prone to infection. Although diabetic shoes or shoe inserts may not be included in a supply kit for diabetes, if these items are important to you, they should be readily available. Perhaps the best supplies for diabetics include resources, which explain this disease and how to correctly monitor the blood sugar level. The glucometer should have clear instructions with target levels for “normal” blood sugar readings. There should also be directions on how to use the lancet and load the paper strip into the glucometer. While all of these steps may seem small, together they are vital in helping you manage diabetes.

Source:Insulin Pump Pros and Cons… It's the Inside Story

Insulin is a hormone in our body that helps our body realize that it is well fed. This in turn will cause the muscles on our body and the liver to store glycogen from the basic glucose. The presence of insulin also causes the fat cells to receive blood lipids which are converted into triglycerides. Other than the functions mentioned above, insulin also has other anabolic functions in our body.

Types Of Diabetes

There are three basic types of diabetes and these are Type 1, Type 2 and gestational diabetes. Among these three types of diabetes, gestational is the only one specific for women and for pregnancy. Type1 is formerly known as insulin dependent or juvenile onset diabetes and is the type where our own auto immune system destroys the beta cells in the pancreas. It is common for individuals under the age of forty years old and is often triggered by the individual’s diet, viruses and other chemicals that the person is genetically predisposed to.

Type 2 is the more common form of diabetes which affects almost everybody who has it. It is often triggered in people who have a family history of diabetes by poor diet, obesity, inactivity and high blood pressure. It is characterized by insulin resistance and deficiency of insulin in the body. This form of diabetes can be treated by proper diet and exercise along with lifestyle changes.

Gestational diabetes is triggered by the various hormonal imbalances that occur when a woman is pregnant. Of course, the pregnant woman would need to be genetically predisposed to it before it can affect her. Other factors that may trigger this form of the disease are advanced age and obesity. In most cases this condition is cleared up when the mother gives birth.

These three are the basic types or forms of diabetes. Other forms may occur when complications plague the individual with the disease. One thing that should be remembered about this condition is that it is triggered by many factors, almost all of which can be controlled by the individual. Once there is a history of this disease in your family take care to control your diet, weight and exposure to triggers.

Rotary Club of Tortola Fights Diabetes with $10000 Donation to …
Platinum News Online, British Virgin Islands - 8 hours ago
Members of the Rotary Club of Tortola lost more than 150 pounds, and the BVI Diabetes Association gained $10000 at the conclusion of the Club’s 4th annual …

Source:Rotary Club of Tortola Fights Diabetes with $10000 Donation to … - Platinum News Online