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I remember meeting a middle-aged woman who had uncontrolled diabetes.  She was having a lot of yeast infections and I told her that she would continue to have yeast infections that caused severe symptoms unless her diabetes was controlled. She was supposed to be using insulin but did not want to get on insulin. She told me that everyone that she knew that was on insulin had some sought of amputation and she did not want any part of her body cut off. I told her that it was not the insulin that caused the amputation; it was having uncontrolled diabetes that caused the problem.

Diabetes is the leading cause of disability and death in the U.S. Blacks and Hispanics are almost twice as likely to have diabetes as non-Hispanic whites.

• Diabetes nearly doubles the risk for heart attack and death from heart disease
• Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure
• Diabetes is the leading cause of new cases of blindness among working-age adults
• The rate of amputation for people with diabetes is 10 times higher than for people without diabetes
• Roughly 60 – 70 percent of people with diabetes have mild to severe forms of nerve damage that could results in pain in the feet or hands, slow digestion, sexual dysfunction and other nerve problems.

November is American Diabetes Month. This year’s theme is ‘Eat Well, America’.

We can all make a difference when it comes to diabetes. We can decrease our risk by:

• Knowing your numbers (get screened for diabetes) – there are lots of people walking around with the disease and unaware they have it
• Watching your weight
• Eating healthy
• Getting more physical activity

Please check out the following for more information on Eat Well, America. Start out with learning about the plate.

November 17, 2015 is National Healthy Lunch Day. You are encouraged to ‘lunch right with every bite’. On this day, you are asked to make or buy a healthy lunch.

Source: main.diabetes.org