Milk Fund makes a difference for diabetic mom
Filed under: Daily News
Hypothetical exercise: imagine you're the mother of a young family. You're struggling financially. You're diabetic. What do you need the most? What would help you get by? Um, how about medical supplies? Tuition breaks? Canned goods? No. Okay, cash? No. Well, then, I would have to guess...MILK. Yes, correct! The Daily Iberian of Louisiana and the local Social Service Center is sponsoring a fund to provide needy families with milk. They collected $912 this month, which includes a donation of over $300 from a local elementary school fundraising club. Says a representative from the Social Service Center, "The Milk Fund is doing very well. People have been very generous, but there's still a great need." This month, part of the money will provide a month's worth of milk to a diabetic woman who is taking care of her mom in addition to her three kids.
Now, I'm not knocking the idea of milk-gifting. It's very generous on the part of the fundraisers. But, milk? Never heard of that one before. But, hey, if you're in a position to make a donation, here's where to send your check: The Daily Iberian, P.O. Box 9290, New Iberia, LA 70563.
Daily Pill Restores Natural Blood Sugar Balance
Filed under: Type 2, Adult Onset, Drugs, Daily News
The FDA has approved sitagliptin phosphate tablets to improve blood glucose levels in patients with type 2 diabetes. The drug, named Januvia, is proudly presented to the diabetic community by Merck and Co.
JANUVIA, a once-daily pill, enhances your body's natural ability to balance blood sugar levels. Your body sends important messages to your pancreas to try to balance high blood sugar. In response, your pancreas makes more insulin and signals the liver to make less sugar. But a substance in your body called DPP-4 blocks some of these important messages. JANUVIA works by blocking DPP-4, so more of the important messages get through. It also helps your pancreas make more insulin and signal your liver to make less sugar. Another feature of this new drug is the ability to prevent your sugar from going too low. JANUVIA works only when your blood sugar levels are high, or out of balance. When your blood sugar levels are at a healthy balance, JANUVIA doesn't have an effect. Because JANUVIA stops working before your blood sugar gets too low, it is not likely to lower your blood sugar to a potentially dangerous level (hypoglycemia). One more bonus to JANUVIA is the fact that this drug did not show weight gain in most patients during clinical trials.
Could this be the answer for your diabetes dilemma? Next time you swing by your doctor's office, mention that new drug Merck released. I'm sure your doctor will be as thrilled to see your numbers controlled as you'll be to see your natural ability to control them restored. Best of luck to those who find their diabetic solution in JANUVIA!
What's the deal with aspirin and strokes?
Filed under: Drugs, Daily news, Women Heart Health, Men Heart Health, Aging Heart Health
It's a pretty well-known belief that taking an aspirin a day will reduce your risk of stroke. Actually, it's pretty much regarded as a proven fact, although this thinking might have to be changed as it's also being said that Aspirin may in fact increase your chance of a stroke. According to experts, the risks associated with Aspirin outweigh the benefits, though the risks of taking Aspirin are not specified. Nonetheless, I think it's bad practice to take any sort of drug every day unless ordered by your doctor.This just goes to show that you can't believe everything you read or hear, even if it is regarded as fact.
Brit kids save diabetic dad in swimming pool incident
Filed under: Type 1, Daily News
Awww. Call me a sap, but I love these heart-warming rescue stories. A couple of British kids saved their diabetic dad recently from drowning. The man, Martin Limon (41), has diabetes and suffered a seizure while in a swimming pool. Talk about your bad timing. But wait! He had some good luck: his nine-year-old son saw him in time as he was sinking. The boy and his ten-year-old sister together dragged dad up to the surface of the water and held his head up until a lifeguard came to the rescue. They also helped emergency personnel treat their dad by telling them what he had had to eat for breakfast that day and what his blood sugar level had been. Said dad Martin, "I had been in the pool about five minutes when I started to feel a bit strange. I thought I would be okay but the next thing I remember is waking up in the ambulance." Now he's super-proud of his kids: "I know everybody thinks their kids are great, but what they did was fantastic."Now, someone probably would have saved this guy from drowning, kids or no kids. I mean, he was at a public swimming pool. There were other swimmers around as well as trained lifeguards and other pool employees. But it's still great that his kids reacted so quickly and appropriately. It must be absolutely terrifying for a little kid to see their dad going under the water like that. So it's cool that they did not panic and knew what to do.
Check out this adorable family photo, which I found posted on the Daily Mail's website.
Global warming and heart health
Filed under: Prevention, Daily news
Global warming is a term we're all familiar with right now, and as we look to the future of our planet, we can only wonder what effects it will have. At the European Society of Cardiology's annual meeting this week in Austria, conversations turned to the affects of global warming on heart health, and some experts are concerned.Citing the fact that hearts don't do as well in hot weather, some cardiologists feel that in the coming years we may see an increase in heart related fatalities. Others think that pollution and overpopulation (leading us all to live in cities) may be a problem. Still others think that humans may adapt, and that warmer temperatures may get people out exercising more frequently.
It's all speculation at this point, but it's interesting nonetheless. What do you think?
Valentine's Day diagnosis didn't slow her down
Filed under: Type 1
Beloit, Wisconsin, resident Vonnie Adams threw a big party recently. The occasion? To celebrate living and thriving despite being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes fifty years ago. Adams is now seventy-two years old and decided, hey, after living with the disease for all these years she deserved to celebrate. Hence the party, which she planned herself and which was attended on Saturday by a happy crowd of family and friends numbering about 140. Now this is cute: Adams didn't tell invitees what the occasion was on the invitations, only saying it was a 50th anniversary celebration. Upon turning up at the shindig they discovered it was a chance for Adams to celebrate her having triumphed over the difficulties that diabetes have caused her, and also a chance to acknowledge all the people who have assisted her on her journey. Adams is pictured at right holding a framed photo of one of those special helpers: Ken Gold, her doctor of twenty-five years, who was unable to make it to the event. Gold, she says, not only helped her stay in shape over the years but also became one of her best friends. Amazing - we could all use a doctor like that, huh?The diagnosis came on Valentine's Day, 1957, Adams recalled in an interview with the Beloit Daily News. At the time she was a senior in college and twenty-two years of age. Symptoms like thirst and fatigue she put down to the flu. By the time she saw a doctor she was very ill - barely conscious, in fact. But it didn't get her down: "I made up my mind right away that my lifestyle would be greatly altered. Things I did, eating, exercise. I knew right at the get-go that I wasn't going to let it control my life. I was going to control the diabetes, the diabetes wasn't going to control me." Now that's what you call an attitude worth envying. Despite now having lost her sight to diabetes-related complications, Adams retains her incredible positive attitude. To read more, visit the Beloit Daily News.
Burnt dinner saves the day
Filed under: Daily News
There was a close call for a sixty-eight year-old gentleman in the UK yesterday. The man in question has diabetes. According to a report in the British paper The News Shopper, he was cooking dinner for himself at his home in Charlton when he went into a diabetic coma. Now, often in stories like this, there always seems to be an adorable child or super-smart dog who dives in and dials 911. In this case, however, the man's dinner saved the day! Yes, his dinner, which was cooking on the hob (don't you love the British?) of his stove and was left unattended after he collapsed. Eventually it went on fire and very fortunately this set off his fire alarm. Phew! A monitoring system also alerted a council worker who assists this fellow. Paramedics rushed over and took him off to hospital. No word on how he's doing now, but that's what you call a close one. Also, a good reminder on the value of smoke alarms. Get 'em. They're cheap and easy to install.
All soda is evil (the diet ones too)
Having a soda habit isn't healthy, most people know that. But what may surprise you is that all soda is bad for you, diet types included. Recent research shows that as little as 1 soda per day (diet or regular) greatly increases a person's risk for developing metabolic syndrome, which is a precursor for both heart disease and diabetes.The diet soda industry is all up in arms over this news, saying there's no evidence or proof that it's the diet soda that's to blame based on how the study was done. And they're right -- there isn't. But something here is fishy, and considering there's such a significant connection it seems better to cut back on the soda habit and be safe, rather than ignore the connection completely and be sorry.
The tobacco debate continues
Filed under: Smoking, Daily news
Smoking bans are a popular topic these days ... my city just implemented one in the new year and it's generated lots of controversy. But here's another controversial subject that I noticed on our sister blog, That's Fit: Should the government be regulating what goes in to cigarettes too? Right now, there's no limit on how much nicotine tobacco companies can put in cigarettes, and as you probably know, nicotine is what makes cigarettes addictive. Theoretically, tobacco companies could put huge amounts of nicotine in cigarettes to keep their current customers addicted for as long as possible. That's what would be best for business, after all. But at the same time, smokers need to own up to some sort of personal responsibility for what they're putting into their bodies.
What do you think?
Moles may be related to aging
Filed under: Research, Daily news
How many moles do you have? I counted 14 before I got bored and gave up, but I have quite a bit, although I always thought they were just dark freckles (As an aside, I noticed I have a collection of moles on my arm that form an M--my first initial--so hooray for this post. Though you're probably not interested so nevermind ... )Anyway, here's my point: A study shows that people with 100 or more moles age better and have a biological age that's 6 or 7 years younger than counterparts of the same calendar age. And if you're wondering what one's biological age is based on, it's the length of their telomeres, which are the ends to our DNA strands. As we age, telomeres inevitably get shorted, which it's thought is one of the main factors behind the whole aging process.
As such, people with a younger biological age are less prone to age-related diseases and conditions like heart disease. So count your moles and if you have over 100, count your lucky stars too!
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