By Monica Gutierrez
Type 2 diabetes mellitus is the most common form of diabetes. With type 2 diabetes the body does not produce enough insulin or the cells in the body become insulin resistant. This becomes a big issue because your body depends on insulin to deliver glucose (sugars and starches in their simplest form) to the cells. Glucose ends up accumulating in the blood, leading to diabetes complications.
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While medications prescribed by physicians are important in controlling diabetes, diet plays a huge role. Recently, I have stumbled upon many news articles, which stress the importance of a balanced diet for diabetics and those at risk. Here is a very informative clip that talks about the correlation between eating healthy and diabetes.
Although diet is a very important component in treating diabetes, there is a concern that health practitioners may not be pushing the subject enough. According to Christopher Wanjek, LiveScience's Bad Medicine Columnist,
"A doctor might prescribe the relatively benign drug metformin to control blood sugar. Then there's the eat-better lecture and see-you-next-year handshake. Other patients might get drugs containing sulfonylureas and the same lecture."
A short lecture on nutrition may not be enough information for a patient with diabetes. It may take time to learn what kinds of foods to eat, how to eat them, and how much to eat. In addition, they need to know why they are making changes in what they consume, so that they better understand the link between diabetes and their diet. For that reason, it should be made mandatory to hold nutrition education in all hospitals, including individual counseling for diabetics by a registered dietitian.
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The American Diabetes Association prefers that we don't use the term "diabetic" when refering to patients, and that we say "person with diabetes" instead.
ReplyDeleteGood point! this is something to remember when writing letters too. Instead of saying "I worked with diabetics/diabetic patients" say "I worked with patients with diabetics"
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