PIC Current

by DeNita S.B. Morris, PIC Network

Diabetes is digging deeply into health care pockets of Americans at an alarming sum. Here’s how you can help save dollars and, more importantly, lives.

Courtesy of Kirin Queen

Diabetes is rapidly becoming one of the United States’ most common and costliest diseases. We spent $218 billion on diabetes in 2007, according to a recent report funded by Novo Nordisk, a manufacturer of insulin and diabetes medications.

When health care costs are high for preventable and treatable diseases like diabetes, it puts added strain on the health care industry. That tension shows up in the form of higher health insurance premiums, costlier co-pays, pricier prescriptions, etc. So, yes, diabetes is impacting our pocketbooks and wallets, as well as our health and well-being.

Currently, there are more than 23 million Americans who have diabetes, and at least five million (nearly one-quarter) of them don’t know they suffer from the disease, according to the American Diabetes Association.

The best thing we can do to help lower rising health care costs is to know our diabetes status, and aim to prevent and/or manage the disease after being diagnosed. Unlike type 1 diabetes, which strikes children and can only be treated with insulin injections, type 2 diabetes occurs most often in adults (over age 45) and it can be treated with proper diet, exercise, medication or injected insulin.

Diabetes (or “sugar” as it’s still known to some folks) is a metabolic disease that affects the body’s ability to produce or properly use insulin. When insulin, a hormone, isn’t working right, the body cannot convert sugar, starches and other food into energy.

Here are a few life-saving facts you need to know that may help you stay diabetes-free:

• Eat to live: People whose diets consist of processed foods mainly, such as chips and highly-refined foods, such as white sugar, white rice or white flour, are at greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
• Know your family history: A family history of type 2 diabetes is a major risk factor. If one or both parents or a sibling develops the condition, then even those family members who are disease-free are at increased risk.
• Weight matters: An estimated 75 percent to 80 percent of people are obese at the time of a type 2 diagnosis. Maintaining a healthy weight will help lower your risk for diabetes.
• Stay aware of the signs and symptoms: While some people have no symptoms and only discover that they are pre-diabetic or diabetic only after a routine blood test, there are many classic signs you need to know, including: increased thirst, a constant need to urinate, fatigue, irritability, nausea, increased appetite, lost weight despite consuming more food, repeated infection of the gums, skin, vagina or bladder, slow-healing infections and wounds, a tingling  “pins-and-needles “ sensation or loss of feeling in the hands or feet, blurry vision and dry, itchy skin.

According to the report, individuals with undiagnosed diabetes cost the U.S. $18 billion in 2007. If you are at increased risk for diabetes and/or you’re experiencing any of the signs and symptoms of this disease, take action by getting tested. A simple blood test taken after eight hours of fasting is all you need to do.  

If you have diabetes, our sister site The Beehive, has a great online tool to help you manage your condition.

Related Links:

Health Care Marketplace: Diabetes Cost U.S. $218B in 2007, Report Finds

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