“Don’t let
the ‘pre’ fool you—prediabetes is a serious health condition where blood sugar
levels are higher than normal, but not high enough yet to be diagnosed as
diabetes. Prediabetes puts you at increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes,
heart disease, and stroke.”
--from
cdc.gov
 |
| Kids learn about real food at a Growing Healthy Kids' workshop. |
I get upset when someone I know lands in the hospital due to complications from undiagnosed
or untreated diabetes. One common thread with many cases has been that their spouses are health care professionals. I get upset because I keep thinking they should have had the knowledge to better manage and control their diabetes and to not become so ill they needed to be hospitalized.
More than 88
million Americans – one in three adults – have prediabetes, according to the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Prediabetes occurs when cells in
your body don’t respond normally to insulin, a hormone made by your
pancreas. Insulin serves as a key,
unlocking the doors of cells to allow glucose in the bloodstream to enter and
be used for energy, and then stores any leftover glucose in the liver.
If a nurse or
doctor is not sharing their professional knowledge about diabetes with their
own family, then what about their patients? Few physicians are teachers. They diagnose, then prescribe drugs. When their two minutes are up, they say, “See
you in three months.” They rarely ask, “What
do you eat in a typical day?” even though that discussion could end up adding quality and years to their patients' lives if it prevented life-threatening complications such as a heart attack or kidney
dialysis.
Who is
teaching individuals with a fasting blood sugar result of 120 that they have prediabetes, what prediabetes is, and how to reverse
it? Who is teaching the patient with an
A1C of 9.5 hospitalized with diabetes complications what that A1C means,
how often the test should be done and why, and how shifting to plant-based
eating (mainly fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains) can help to
control and reverse diabetes?
Diabetes can
be reversed. Prediabetes, if diagnosed
and interventions are made, can be prevented from progressing to diabetes,
which cost the US $327 Billion in 2017, a 26% increase in 5 years.
With the
COVID-19 pandemic wrecking havoc on American families and businesses, there is a sense of urgency to get diabetes
education into communities at high risk for diabetes and prediabetes. COVID-19 risk factors include diabetes,
high blood pressure, obesity, sickle cell anemia, and COPD. If you know a church or community leader
who would like to host a Zoom conversation about diabetes literacy, please
contact me at growinghealthykidsnow@gmail.com. Let's talk!
Together, we can create a wave of diabetes
literacy in our homes, churches, and communities.
With love,
Nancy
Heinrich, MPH
Founder and
Wellness Architect
