WVIZ/PBS ideastream®: Diabetes: The Constant Shadow

thanks you for doing this series. I have been a diabetes educator/ coach for over 25 years and am still trying to find ways to reach people who have the daily challenge of diabetes.  There is no other condition that quite demands so much “self-mgt.” as diabetes...and to do this, one must be well-informed and “coached with the best game plan”. There are wonderful community resources that are there to lend a hand.  I’m on the Bd. for the Diab. Assn of Gr. Cleveland where local dollars help local folks...I’m a volunteer at Camp, I speak & teach re: diabetes, and still we aren’t curbing this disease.  Show like this are needed....but need to be filled with the hope that good “coaching, good tools & help...make huge impacts on health & living”.  Thank you!  (Also, could you try to turn on the audio portion of the kids interviews at Camp Ho...they have so much to share...I really hope you can fix this!) thanks!

Would it be possible to obtain a copy of your program that aired today on diabetes?  Sound of Ideas-Shadow of Diabetes.

Thanks

I am from the medical field and have come into contact with many people whom have diabetes,I don’t know much about my family history but I do know that my mother does not have the disease but I am not sure if it runs in her family or not and I have no knowledge of my father or his family medical history at all. My grandmother on my mothers side had glocoma and she lost her sight in her late fifties, I am not over weight I have had glocoma, should I be concerned and get tested

I watched your program, mainly because the title caught my attention.  I could not have phrased it any better, as diabetes is a constant, tangible thing, which lurks over your shoulder and affects almost every single decision that you make.

I am a Type 1 diabetic, who was diagnosed over 18 years ago.  I have now lived longer with diabetes than I have without and almost remember no other way to live.  I do my best to stay in control, and have taken steps to insure that I am more in control, like wearing an insulin pump and a continuous glucose monitoring system, which gives real-time sugar readings to allow me to better manage high or low blood sugars.

I feel that your program did not accurately reflect the differences between Types 1 and 2.  Type 2, which was explained rather well, is usually a disease of obesity and can be managed with diet and exercise (as explained).  However, you failed to mention that Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease, which just happens to have the exact same symptoms as Type 2.

I was also very unhappy with your examples of people to interview, as the vast majority of interviewees were out of control diabetics (with one example of a “good diabetic.” One woman (the driver), tested her sugar at 260 (viewable on-screen) before getting into the car to drive, and the blind woman reading came back at 360.  To which she states is, “a little high.”

This is a tragic understatement.  Neither 260, nor 360 are a little high.  One is very high, and the other ultra high.  My first response to being 260 would not have been to get in the car and drive, but to treat the issue with an appropriate amount of insulin.  I get annoyed if my sugar goes above 180, let alone over 200. 

While there are health related risks of having low blood sugar, like dementia (as in the police interview), you failed to mention the immediate health risks of high blood sugar.  Yes, you gave the long-range risks, but in the short term, you have the increased thirst and urination (which is a symptom that does not go away after diagnosis, but occurs every time the blood sugar is elevated), but also results in fatigue, and if too high, vomiting.  A fatigued, thirsty, vomiting, or a driver that is rushing because they have to urinate excessively is just as much of a risk as one that is experiencing low blood sugar.

I will admit that I have been lucky with my diabetes.  But we make our own luck and through my own constant monitoring, I have not landed in the hospital, nor do I have any signs whatsoever of any complications.  Your title is apt, it is a constant shadow, but the incentives to take care of yourself far outweigh the consequences.  I have a two-year old son.  If I did not take care of myself, who would take care of him if my wife were away? It isn’t just the diabetic who is affected by this disease, but everyone around them as well. 

Think about who you may be putting in danger or who you are making responsible for you if something happens to you.

This is a disease that can be managed.  The silver lining to diabetes is that if you take care of yourself, through the proper medication, diet, and exercise, you have the potential for being healthier than a “normal person.” Use that to your advantage!

Thanks for the show.  It’s always good to educate.  Consider the critique’s, fine tune and do it again!  I have been a type 1 diabetic for 18 years.  When diagnosed, I was 32 years of age and active duty.  I was medically discharged because of diabetes.  This was only the first time I was discriminated against because of the disease.

I have good control.  It does amaze me with the attitude of people that refuse to ackknowledge the facts.  If you ignore this disease, there WILL be negative results.

I would like to see a website that could give/get feedback about local medical providers and equipment for diabetes.

Thanks again, for the education.

Hello, My name is Lisa Hale and I am a Registered and Licenced Dietitian in Ohio.

I wanted to say that I was disappointed how little your program:  “Diabetes The Constant Shadow” promoted Dietitians as a useful resource for diabetes control and weight maintenance. 

Often times I have patients who were diagnosed years ago, and never received a diabetic meal pattern/education. I consistently hear that they do not eat sugar and avoid “all carbs” and that is “their” diabetic diet!  When I ask them which foods/food groups contain carbohydrate they say the usual--bread and rice, but have no clue that there are other foods milk, fruit, juice, certain vegetables and combination foods that also contain a significant amount of carbohydrate that will affect their blood glucose.  And rarely they can tell me what a serving size is or how to read the nutrition food label.  Often times these patients are restricting themselves too much and do not realize that a diabetic meal pattern is very flexible.  Your show states diet and exercise as a method of Diabetes control, but after that left the pt hanging.  It was very discouraging.

When patients follow a diabetic meal pattern there is a chance that they can even reduce the amounts of medications that they take.  Why not emphasize that point--it saves money!!!  That is something all of us in the economy can appreciate.

The show mentions to visit the website, but if a person only watches TV and does not have access to the internet, how are they to look up these resources.

I realize with this subject there is a lot to cover, but as dietians are trying to promote our profession and the benefit we can bring to our patients-it would have been nice to have promoted patients seeing a dietitian a little more. 

Sincerely,
Lisa Hale RD, LD

If you have diabetes and are not on a diabetic meal plan/pattern, I encourage you to speak with your primary care physician and request to speak with a dietitian.

Thanks for airing such an impactful show about diabetes!  I learned more from that one show than everything else I’ve heard combined.  I never realized that once diabetes set in you had it forever; somehow I thought of it as a temporary thing.  I was rated “at risk” for developing diabetes and have always intended to do something about it someday.  But I’m definitely motivated to take action NOW before any more damage is done to my body and my health.  Thanks for the push!!

Thanks for the show.  Its always good to educate.  Consider the critique’s, fine tune and do it again. I have been a type 1 diabetic for 18 years.  When diagnosed, I was 32 years of age and active duty.  I was medically discharged because of diabetes.  This was only the first time I was discriminated against because of the disease.

I have good control.  It does amaze me with the attitude of people that refuse to ackknowledge the facts.  If you ignore this disease, there WILL be negative results mono symptoms.

I would like to see a website that could give/get feedback about local medical providers and equipment for diabetes.

Thanks again, for the education.