What is Diabetes?

A metabolic condition that causes the Pancreas to either:

• Not produce enough insulin (the enzyme that breaks food down into energy so the body can utilize it);
• Or the insulin it produces is not used properly by the body.

What are the three types of Diabetes?

• Type 1
• Type 2
• Gestational (pregnant women develop this type of diabetes due to the increased requirement of the fetus, that their system is unable to meet).

Which type is most common?

Type 2

• Accounts for 90% of the cases in the United States;
• Especially in people of color;
• Largely due to insulin resistance (the insulin that is being produced by the pancreas is not working effectively).

Hard Facts (from Ga DHR Data Summary 2007)

• In the United States
  • 20.8 million children and adults have diabetes – about 7% of the population;
  • 6.2 million people, about 1/3, are unaware that they have diabetes.
• In Georgia
  • In 2005 diabetes was the 7th leading cause of deaths, killing 1,717 Georgians, equivalent to almost 5 deaths per day.
  • For every death with diabetes as a primary cause, there were two other deaths in which, diabetes was a contributing cause.
  • Additionally, in 2005, the age adjusted death rate per 100,000 of the population was 1.2 times higher in men (25.2) than in women (20.7).The rate was also 2.5 times higher among blacks (44.0) than among whites (17.5).
  • In 2005, the proportion of premature deaths due to diabetes was higher among black males (51%), followed by white males (43.8%, black females (32.6%, and white females (23.7%).

Diabetes (Type 2) Can Be Prevented And Controlled!

• To prevent Type 2 diabetes:
  • Individuals overweight usually require losing 5-7% of their body weight;
  • Must keep the weight off;
  • Be physically active for 5 or more days a week for at least 30 minutes a day.
• To control type 2 diabetes:
  • Develop healthy eating pattern to control fat, and carbohydrates;
  • Control calories;
  • Monitor blood sugar daily (to ensure that it is within the desired ranges prescribed by the physician);
  • Take medication as prescribed;
  • Be physically active 5-7 days a week, for at least 30 minutes per day.
  • A Life style change is the key to becoming controlled!

Why Control Diabetes?

• To prevent immediate problems and discomforts:
  • Fatigue;
  • Thirst;
  • Frequent urination;
  • Infection.
• To prevent long-term complications:
  • Heart disease;
  • Stroke;
  • Blindness;
  • Kidney problems;
  • Nerve Disease;
  • Amputations.

How The Medicine Works

• Diabetes Pills are not Insulin
  • The pills help the pancreas make more insulin;
  • Make the liver make less glucose between meals (reduces the amount of sugar in the blood);
  • Make the liver make less glucose between meals (reduces the amount of sugar in the blood);
• Insulin
  • Is a protein, if taken orally would be digested by the stomach acids. Therefore, it is administered by injection into the skin.
  • Provides insulin to the body because the pancreas is not producing insulin. It is thought that the pancreas has been worn out in these cases.
  • The action of insulin varies according to the type used. As the disease progresses, a combination of long term acting and short term action insulin have to be used to sustain a person who is insulin dependent.

What Type of Medicine Does Each Type Need?

• Type 1- Always Insulin;
• Type 2 – No medicine (if controlled by weight loss and diet) , pill or insulin;
• Gestational – Ideally none, but may require insulin.

Why Monitor

Monitoring the blood sugar can be done by finger stick blood samples or by a test the physician can order called the hemoglobin AIC (which determines the rages of blood sugars over 3 months). Findings below 8% are desirable. This test should be done at least twice per year.

Monitoring:

• Shows how food, medicine and activity affect blood glucose;
• Helps with adjusting self-care to get blood glucose under better control;
• Logs help the provider see the pattern.

Target Ranges

• Ideally recommended by the physician or medical team;
• Standard Range
  • 80-120 before meals
  • Less than 140 two hours after meals