Signing Off

Hello, to all who read and all who will read. Thanks for reading and/or following this. Because of this blog I've learned a lot about diabetes and raising awareness. My only hope is that we can take everything we know and do better with it. Basically its what everybody says: exercise and eat healthy, but it doesn't hit you until you actually try it. But, you truly feel accomplished after you do. Even if it's just eating healthy, try something. It won't hurt to try at all. And if it does...I apologize.

Signing Off...
A.Bellman

Be Happy Be Healthy!
~Buzz the Bee

Attention All Alabamians!!

Hey! Okay, I just read this article about childhood obesity, and it really hits home! Children this generation are estimated, for the first time apparently in two centuries, to have shorter life expectancies than their parents! That is big! That means the kids in this generation will be lucky to watch their grandchildren grow up like the grandparents today! We need to raise awareness which is what this article is about. Alabama is ranked 2nd in obesity and 3rd in type 2 Diabetes. If you want more info!? Click here.

What is Awaiting Us...?

Doesn't everybody at some point in time look to the future. Whether its looking to tomorrow or 10 years from now. Well how about 40 years from now? What does the future say for us in 2050. Will apparently, according to a new study, in 2050 the number of Americans with diabetes will triple! Especially if things continue as they are now. Triple! 31% of Alabama already have diabetes now! Think what the number would be when it triples for the entire country. Scary huh?

Well it doesn't have to be. Eat Healthier! Outside of school or the past month I've been eating only vegetarian meals, and it does make a difference! Come on healthy food taste good too sometimes! It's as simple as switching to Multi-Grain Tostitos (the ones you eat with salsa) So come on, try it. I promise you, if I can do it, so can you!

Identity Crisis!! PLEASE HELP MAKE CHANGE!

Okay, you know how in high school the students, usually the senior class, votes on how they will remember certain people. There's : class clown, best dresses, most likely to succeed, etc. Do you know what Alabama is known as? One of the fattest, laziest states in America. Harsh? Yes. True? Also, yes. Is this really how we want to be remembered as? Diabetes is higher in the south than any region, and Alabama is right up there on the list of the most cases of diabetes, heart diseases, and obesity. Yes we don't get: Best this or best that, unless its "Best laziest state" or something like that, but who wants to be known like that?

I'm having an identity crisis here, because I know that I don't want to be known as this. I'm not saying my peers voted wrong, but I don't want to be what they say I am. I want change, but no one can do it alone. So if we want change....for awhile all we can really do is want.

And the Winners are...

It's great to be in the top three, right? Well, apparently not always! Congratulations, Alabama, you ranked number 3 in Clinically Depressed States (Mississippi was 1). Though Alabama's diagnosis for this depression, is just being plain lazy! Yeah, we all have our lazy spells, but extreme laziness affects our health more than we know. It may not seem like much to lay on the couch and chow down on a bag of chips, but when that becomes a lifestyle, then we have a problem. 65% of people in Alabama suffer from obesity! That's over half the state! Also obesity is the second highest cause of death in the country and it can lead to diabetes!

Also Alabama also wins another prize tonight. "As expected, Alabama leads the nation in adults diagnosed with high blood pressure, 31% of people in Alabama with the disease compared to 24.9% nationally, according to Centers for Disease Control, 2002 (CDC) research. And increases in adults with diabetes, Alabama, was 10.5% higher in the U.S. more than twice the rate of 5% of the fiftieth place in Minnesota."

The prizes just keeps on coming! Now I know these obviously aren't things to be proud of, but they are what they are. Who's going to make a change? Alabama can't change itself! It's up to the people. Taking action is a choice! Obesity is a condition that needs treatment! It doesn't have to be a lifestyle.

Click here to read the article about obesity and fitness.

Give It To Me Straight, Doc!

Okay, you're at the doctor for a check-up, right? Everything's going great, then he tells you, you have diabetes, and leaves. Now what? Well this situation isn't as uncommon as you think. I've even read of cases where the doctor gave his patient two pamphlets after telling them of their newfound challenge. Wouldn't you want more? Well when struggling with diabetes of course consulting a doctor is going to be beneficial, but sometimes a little more is required on the patient's part. They have to do the research themselves, choose healthier/ better foods to eat, and exercise. Diabetics have to be educated.

Diabetes is caused by melancholy.
Thomas Willis

Put Down the Pen and Pick up the Chicken!

People get busy, we all know it. And what we do when we're busy sometimes conflict with our health. We'll down an energy drink or take a few pills to keep us going. We even skip meals, I know I'm guilty for this. We see eating as taking up time instead of a healthy choice. Diabetics can't make this mistake. Skipping even one meal can lower their blood sugar level to the point where it needs immediate attention! As I posted in an earlier blog, my dad is diabetic. Recently, he had to be taken to the hospital because his blood sugar was too low. Next time we think about skipping a meal, don't. At least grab something to snack on. Some people don't have the "luxury" of being able to skip meals just to be able to have more time in the day. Just something to think about.

Here's a little something I wrote on this:

You know your body,
you know your limit
don't push
step back

You don't have to be
strong.
Not for me
I can take it

Don't sacrifice
what's important--
you
Please

Yeah, its not great but its just how I felt.

Life is not over because you have diabetes. Make the most of what you have, be grateful."
Dale Evans Rodgers

Who's Hungry?

This week I got a first hand experience at what dinner is like for diabetics. My mom cooked us a homemade low carb, meal. It was he own creation that she came up with on her own. Soon we'll be using the Diabetic cook book I came across, but for now creative ideas will work. She made a chicken casserole, with white chicken breast strips as the main meat. She seasoned it with chives and basil leaves and different vegetables. She used Campbells Cream of Chicken and Cream of Celery soup for the sauce bass. Also instead of topping it with fried onions like we do with most casseroles she crumbled up crackers and topped it with that. It was delicious and good. Eating healthy doesn't always have to be tasteless. You just have to get creative! Here a few pics of our family meal.
For more suggestions and tips about eating healthier click Here. This isn't just for diabetics. It's for anyone who wishes to eat healthier a few days out of the week, or just have a healthy diet. Enjoy!

Laughter is the best medicine - unless you're diabetic, then insulin comes pretty high on the list.
Jasper Carrott

Diabetic Treatments and Events

Diabetes can take time to adjust to. There are many different treatments and medicines for those who live with diabetes. However, the medication and treatment actually depend on the person. Not all treatments are for everyone. It may take time and attempts so find the treatment that is best for a certain person. Though one of the most important things diabetics should do is stay on top of their diabetes. Especially through exercise can help control your blood sugar level. Also recently a Diabetic Medical Researcher pioneer, William Kirtley died at the age of 96. He started working after World War 2 that improved the lives of many diabetics. Just something to think about!

Also on September 25, 2010 at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, there will be the 20th Annual Birmingham Walk to Cure Diabetes! I am in the process of trying to go and I'm checking to see if I can participate in the walk, which will be a sight to see! I'm sure it'll be a wonderful turn out and I'll give out more information when I can! I know leave you with a quote!

"I can't convince you to put the drink down if you're an alcoholic, you have to want to do that. I can't convince you to stop eating the cookies when you're a diabetic. You have to do that. And that takes responsibility."
- Don Young

Diabetes?

Diabetes is much more than, "Oh, I can't eat that many sweets". No.

Yes, sweets are to be avoided if you have diabetes, but that's only scratching the surface. Diabetes is when the insulin in your body is either not being produced or it's not functioning properly. Insulin is a polypeptide hormone, produced by the beta cells of the langerhans and the pancreas, that regulates the metabolism of glucose and other nutrients. Basically, insulin is what helps your body absorb the vitamins and nutrients that you need to grow, function, and live. Also, it controls your metabolism, so it either speeds up or slows it down radically. From these facts, it's easy to see how malfunctioning metabolism can be a real problem. Insulin is carried through your bloodstream. Your blood sugar levels (glucose levels) are controlled by your metabolism, so you have to keep an eye on your levels because if it goes down, then you don't have enough insulin. Most people with diabetes can control their glucose levels by keeping a careful eye on their diet, exercising, and keeping their body weight in the prescribed range according to height.

In diabetes, age is very important. The older you are, the harder it is to control your glucose levels. When you are younger, it is easier because your metabolism is high, you're very active, and you don't eat as much. Diabetes is serious and real. Diabetes kills approximately 234,000 people a year, and that is only in the US. In the countries that aren't as clean and don't have good medical care, such as Africa, the death toll is much higher.

That Good Ol' Family Heart Trouble

For the “Cast Your Bucket Down” project, Mr. Dickson recommended that we choose a topic that we can relate to, because what’s a work of writing without passion behind it, right? So I chose the subject of illnesses and diseases resulting from poor dietary choices and habits. I have a family history of such diseases including the all-powerful diabetes and high cholesterol induced from hearty partaking of greasy goodness. So with sparing my family’s dignity and health issues put aside, I should have plenty of first hand knowledge for research, maybe even a picture or two of the rainbow of pills my father has to pop everyday because of his diabetes.

Just last summer I visited my great-grandfather’s grave and underneath the tombstone was a war plaque; it turns out that he fought in War World II. After the whole family history jazz was given to me, I asked my father if he died in war. No. Great- grandfather died of heart trouble. So now I’m just looking for prime time for an interview from one of my older family members with that good ol’ family heart trouble. Currently I’m debating what research will be needed in order to create either a play inspired from my father’s hospitalization, or a short non-fiction work about the subject.

Diabetes and Me

Obesity. High Cholesterol. Diabetes. Words or Warning? Alabama is the 3rd most medicated state in America! It almost tied at number 2 with Tennessee. Almost 66% of the population in Alabama is overweight, 235.5 people out of 100,000 have heart disease, and over 12% have diabetes.

Diabetes is a condition that has already hit close to home for me. My father has it and yes, we live in Alabama, so seeing reports like this isn't comforting. But do we let it get us down? Nope! We move forward so we don't end up as a statistic. Yes my father has diabetes, we can't change that, but what we can change is the conditions that come with it if he doesn't take care of himself, and if we don't help him. Will it be hard? Of course! Especially living in the south surrounded by all this soul food, but we can do it.

The life of a diabetic, I've already seen, isn't easy. Counting carbs because you can't go over a certain amount a day, eliminating foods from your diet, and constantly having to know what your blood sugar is? You'd have to be Superman to do it perfectly. Though I'm sure even Superman would be tempted to cheat on his diet.