SweetLifeStories Diabetes Blog

The recent published study* (see below) about the high concentration of diabetes found within southeastern U.S. states gives me cause to consider so many unanswerable questions, mostly leaning toward incredulous denial. My first reaction? You’ve got to be kidding!  It just doesn’t seem likely . . . or at least, that simple, as a geographic preponderance having higher rates of diabetes than is found in the rest of the country.

The words used to describe the so-called “diabetes belt” jolt my reality. And that reality includes living in the southwestern (not southeastern) U.S. where vast numbers of Hispanic and Native American-indigenous people suffer from diabetes and its ongoing impact. You almost cannot talk with anyone in this region who isn’t personally affected by the disease or knows someone who is!  Thus, my disbelief in this simplified media report.

Still, I’m willing to concede, to a degree, that there are many factors that might have played a role in the study’s initial outcome. Larger concentrations of people living in southeastern states (vs. the southwest), high levels of diabetes running rampant in specific ethnic/cultural groups (i.e., Spanish; African American; Hispanic; Jewish-European; and others), group customs, socio-economic level, weather conditions not being conducive to exercise, and too little and/or too much access to food; all may have impacted the reported results.

But let’s be smart about this! It’s important (for me, too!) not to take the report at face value–other than as a warning sign that we should all take good care of ourselves. Exercise. Dietary awareness. Getting enough sleep. Doing things to relax and make life meaningful. Those are the most important reminders I can think of after reading this sensational study that makes me shudder.

B well, b happy. And b smart, too!

Until next time, Kath

* Here is the article in full:

 

By Catherine Donaldson-Evans Mar 8th 2011 9:53AM

 The area of the country that’s already gotten a bad rap as the “stroke belt” now has another black-mark moniker to add to the list: the “diabetes belt.”

Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the southeastern United States earned the latest nickname based on data they collected in 644 counties to determine where Americans have the highest risk of the disease.

Nearly 12 percent of people living in the “diabetes belt” have the condition, characterized by the abnormal production of blood sugar, compared with 8.5 percent in the rest of the U.S. Currently, about 26 million Americans have diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association.

“We have known for a long time that diabetes was more common in the Southeast than it was in the rest of the nation, but in many ways that’s not an adequate definition,” said the CDC report’s lead researcher Lawrence Barker, according to Reuters.

Barker and his colleagues analyzed national health studies and used that data to create a map of the country with the diabetes rates for each region.

The CDC’s report in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, which provides more specific, detailed information about who has diabetes and where they live, “allows us to identify areas where the need is greatest and where we can direct our attention and efforts to prevent and control diabetes,” explained Barker.

The analysis brought a clear pattern to light: 15 different states had at least some pockets with especially high rates of diabetes, according to Reuters. Those states include Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and all of Mississippi.

People living in that swath of the country were more likely to be obese and lead an inactive lifestyle than those from other parts of the U.S., the study showed. Those factors contributed to nearly a third of the difference in diabetes rates within the diabetes belt versus outside it, according to Reuters.

There were also more residents who were African American and over 65, both risk factors for the disease. But even younger, thinner Southeasterners had a higher chance of diabetes than those who lived elsewhere.

“We suspect there are cultural factors that are very hard to measure — for example, traditional diet [or] attitudes toward seeking medical care,” Barker said.

High diabetes risk showed up in isolated counties in other states, but the problem wasn’t as widespread in those areas, so the CDC didn’t include them.

The yearly cost of treatment is estimated at more than $100 billion. Diabetes sufferers are also more prone to other health problems like kidney and heart disease and certain types of cancer.

The diabetes belt has many states and counties in common with the previously classified stroke belt and heart failure belt, Reuters said.

Had a  whirlwind week in sunny CA; the first 3 days in Los Angeles with all of our small immediate family members and a few extended family members (great to see Sue, Ron & Dar!) who flew in to celebrate my son’s graduation with his MBA. NICE! A different restaurant every night, plus visits to fantastical exhibits at the Ghetty (itself an architectural design treasure) and National Geographic’s Water exhibit–thought-provoking and beautiful images of the necessity and scarcity of water at the heart of conflict in human survival–at the Annenberg Center for Photography. 

Then the next 3 days were spent in San Diego, where I got to experience my first real earthquake. Ate dinner with friends in Del Mar, enjoyed a half-glass of wine on the patio, and about 9:30 p.m. PT, felt a rolling sensation. “Hmmm,” I wondered, “Did I perhaps have too much wine? I’m feeling VERY mellow!” Looking around to double-check my senses, I saw other diners doing the same. Then their heads started nodding recognition and acknowledgement; yep, an earthquake! It was a 5.7, centered in the Mojave Desert only 80 miles from where I sat. Everything was ok; no damage, no one hurt. Though just a bit psychologically jarring, as my brain struggled to appreciate being in the “here and now” instead of the OMG dimension of “What IF . . . ???” One big question I later asked myself was: “What if my blood sugar was low and there was no food to be had? What if I (and my family/friends) were trapped in rubble or earthquake debris?” Perhaps needless to say, sleep was elusive that night, resulting in higher blood sugars the next morning!

Now comes the hard work to try getting back into my real-life groove. Need to focus on the dogs by resuming agility training, creating some new pieces of pottery, working in my garden, reconnecting with friends, and exercising so my head, heart, and body feel better and I can start to feel like my old (mostly functioning) self. Reconciling one’s life “post-vacation” is harder than I’d like to admit . . .

hola from the land of swaying palms, sunshine, and heart-stopping traffic.  i’m here for several days to visit my kids and celebrate my son’s graduation with an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson Business School. good times and lots of energy put into realizing one of his dreams, and me left wondering in this weak world economy if the degree and training were truly worth the $100K he will have to shell out over seven long years! As the advertising field has so generously brainwashed us to believe, guess there’s no price that can be placed on the experience and camaraderie!  UCLA friendships and potential biz relationships: PRICELESS!

so i’m off to stroll the beach boardwalk of Santa Monica, family in tow, hoping to catch the sunset and some local action.  more updates later.

b well. b happy.  –kath

For those who’ve asked, here, at last, is just a peek into part of the preface to my memoir and story about growing up with diabetes:

   Enduring Type I diabetes and its cloak of invisibility has been a stormy paradox. Both a burden and a hard-to-admit blessing. A curse, because everywhere I turned as a child, people shook their heads in disbelief, saying, “But you look so healthy and normal!” Beneath this thinly veiled image, I often raged against fears that never seemed to end! There are so many when you live with the impact of a disease like this. Despair, anger, and denial were my everyday companions.

   Yet living so long with diabetes has also enabled me to reap unanticipated helpings of love, joy, and hope. Thinking back through the years, I’ve carefully mulled over all the laughter and special relationships I’ve experienced connected to diabetes, realizing these are truly gifts in the scheme of things. This is an important part of my journey. Despite losing a few battles, I have somehow emerged a winner. I’ve found happiness by throwing myself into everyday routines doing things I love; teaching, traveling, photography, gardening, and dog training. Even more vital, I have uncovered a gift of far greater triumph by stretching myself to think outside my own needs and consuming fears. Giving more of my time and heart to others has been returned many-fold. Through these activities and the joy of immersion, my doubts and fears about what the future holds have ebbed to almost nothing. Their power over me is nearly vanquished.

In my next post, I’ll share my answer to a question I was once asked.  That powerful question is:  IF YOU COULD GIVE IT ALL BACK, WOULD YOU?

Be well; think positive; make it so. Until next time   -Kathy

Took almost two weeks off from updating my blog, but not really “off” or on vacation!  I wish! Actually spent the last few weeks reworking the first three chapters of my memoir on growing up with diabetes.

Working title: By Firefly’s Light: Surviving and Thriving (in spite of) a Lifetime of Diabetes. 

LOTS of work but so worth it! Writing for days, I’m in a writing daze! Will post a section of the book next week; stay tuned.

“You go, girl! ”

That’s what my friends said 3 months ago when I went to get a Dexa bone scan to see what was going on more than a year after my back fusion. The results were wonderfully unexpected.  Before fusion:  infrequent bits of exercise due to back pain & numbers in the osteoporosis range. Very sad; very scary!  But 15 months post-fusion:  lots of exercise  + Vitamin D + calcium + happiness (an incalculably important ingredient) = magnifico results!  My bone density numbers are no longer in the pits. Just a bit under normal, in fact (yes, I see the irony in that statement), which is GOOD! Something to definitely celebrate!

Today, even my endocrinologist was surprised at the improvement. He couldn’t hide a smile at my attitude; one of triumph. Still, he had to play the cautionary role and read the report written up by some crazy statistician that “there is a 1.7-8.3% chance over the next ten years that  she could possibly break her bones in a fall.” 

Whatever.  I’m not gonna worry needlessly about that today. And BTW:  I’m not anyone’s statistic. Not yet. No time for that. Off to enjoy my exercise any way I choose to dish it up!

THIS month, THIS year, THIS day: I have survived and learned to thrive 45 years with diabetes!