World Diabetes Day, 2007

The big day has finally arrived. Today is the first annual World Diabetes Day. It is a day set aside to promote awareness of a disease that kills millions of people every year.

I am so excited that this day has come to fruition and is as big as it is. I just want to hug whoever came up with the idea. Having this day set aside to promote diabetes awareness is a huge step towards making life better for those who are diagnosed with diabetes.

I have other things on my mind today too. But, that will have to wait for a later post.

I found this video on the World Diabetes Day website. It is the London Eye. I cried when I saw it. Just thinking of all the people all over the world that have banded together for this day is overwhelming.

A Gift in the Mail and an Important Survey

Look what I found in the mail when I got home today.




It's a signed copy of Mr. Iacocca's latest book. It was sent to show appreciation for Walk of Hope I held in October to raise money for The Iacocca Foundation.

I have read several pages and have found that Mr. Iacocca is quite outspoken about what he thinks. I like that.

I have a special place in my heart for The Iacocca Foundation. I believe Mr. Iacocca is truly working to find a cure for the disease that killed his wife (at the young age of 57, I might add) The money donated to IF goes directly to research to find a cure for Type 1 diabetes. It doesn't go to other avenues, only research for a cure. I like that too.

What I've read of the book so far is pretty good. It is certainly thought-provoking. If you get a chance you should pick up a copy for yourself.

And...

Amy over at Diabetes Mine made me aware of a survey that you guys may be interested in.

It is a survey about diabetes technology. This comes directly from Amy's blog:

"The information gathered will be compiled and sent to insurance companies and government bodies in the form of an ad hoc research report. As Kelly notes, "Our hope is that a groundswell of support for diabetes technology will just be one more sign to the policymakers in Washington, DC, that they shouldn't try to be cheap with patients with diabetes. We have all seen the warning signals."

I can't get the badge to work , so click here to take the survey.

Word in Your Hand Video

This is the video for the Word in Your Hand Project for World Diabetes Day.

Look closely. I think you might see a few familiar faces (or hands).

The Print

For participating in the Word in Your Hand project Riley got to pick a print from Deviantart.


Here's what he picked:

A Cup of Tea with a Monster

But, it doesn't come in the right size print.

So, he's getting this one instead.

Isle

Thanks, Manny. I'll make sure to put it in a very special place.

Mission Friends

Today I took Riley and another kid from church to an International Missions study for Mission Friends at my church.

When we arrived there were pictures placed on the table to color. Beside the pictures was a snack of mini Ritz cheese crackers. This wasn't too big of a deal considering it was Riley's snack time anyway. I checked his sugar and he looked up at me and said, "Mom, can you count out some for me?"

You see, he knew that I needed to know how many he ate so I could count the carbs. So, I counted out a few for him and gave him a bolus.

The place they were learning about is called Moldova. So, they learned that in Moldova kids eat egg sandwiches for snack. So, they got to sample one. It wasn't that big of a deal because they only gave him 1/4 of 1 piece of bread (or about 2.5 g) with some egg on it.

Then, they played a game. Then they went to a pretend farmer's market to learn about the food they eat in Moldova. There they sampled carrots, apples, sunflower seeds, and walnuts. I stood back and watched to see exactly how much of everything Riley ate.

Last, they gave the kids grape juice and asked them to taste of honey. Since Riley's sugar had been on the high side when I checked it earlier, I leaned over and whispered in his ear that I had brought him a juice of his own and it was probably best if he skipped tasting the honey. He just nodded his head and did what I said.

After some crafts and a few more games they moved onto the last thing, making a bank to save money for missions. While they were making the bank the leaders came out with cookies, chocolate, and more juice for all the kids.

I again leaned over to Riley and told him I had a juice for him and told him not to eat the cookies or the chocolate, but to save them to eat with his lunch.

Once again, he just nodded his head and did as he was told. He never complained and he never asked why. Because, he knew why.

And, I was happy and sad all at once.

Sad, because he shouldn't have to worry about carbs and things like that. He should just be able to do what all the other kids are doing without having to ask me to count out how many crackers he can have.

But mostly, I was happy because he doesn't complain about things he can't change. He does what he has to do because he has to.

He is wise beyond his years and braver than I can even pretend to be.

Thanks

Today is a day set aside by Gina to honor those in the d-blogging community.

I was introduced to The DOC by Vivian while on the CWD chatroom one night. I had started a blog a few days earlier and she encouraged me to join the community.

I had no idea how much of a blessing it was at the time.

Finding those D blogs was the best therapy I could have ever had.

I've sat and cried over some of the heart-wrenching posts you have written. I've jumped for joy over some of the great accomplishments you have shared. And, I've laughed until I cried a few times too.

You guys have helped me through some very difficult times. And I know you'll be there for any difficulties in the future, as well as the joyful times.

Thank you.

The Heart of the Matter

Today I was thinking about how much time is spent just thinking about diabetes. There is a lot of calculating that must be done. If Riley wants to eat snack I must first find out what his sugar is. Then, I need to decide if it’s an OK sugar depending on what time of day it is and how long it’s been since he last ate. Then, I need to take into account how much insulin, if any, he has floating around from his last bolus. Then, before I bolus I must consider how active he’s been or how active he is about to be (almost impossible with a 5 year old.)

All of this has to be done just for Riley to eat a simple snack. But, that is the easy part.


The brain was made to solve problems. It was made to look at situations and decide the best action to take. The brain is usually very matter of fact about things. Hot is hot and cold is cold.

Even in my sleep-deprived state, my brain normally functions pretty well. My synapses may be a little slow some times, but most of the time they are firing on all cylinders. The brain was made to reason.

The problem is, when you are dealing with your child your heart comes into play too. The heart was not made to reason.

My brain knows that when Riley is having a severe low and he is begging for more juice that what he’s had will be sufficient to bring up his sugar. My heart does not understand why I let him beg.

My brain understands why it is necessary to prick Riley’s finger with a needle 10-12 times a day. My heart doesn’t understand why I prey on his delicate flesh.

My brain reasons that it is OK that Riley is crying when I change his set. It knows that by hurting him I am also saving his life. My heart thinks it’s cruel to make him cry.

There is a constant battle going on between my brain and my heart.

And, today, my heart wins.

Some More Funny

He's not Daniel Tosh funny, but he's still pretty funny. And, I thought you guys could relate to the serving sizes.



Enjoy.

I promise to write a real post tomorrow.

Some more diabetes 365 pictures

Because it's NaBloPoMo and I'm tired I am going to post some of my pictures from Diabetes 365.

If you would like to read the description that goes with the pictures then you'll have to go to my page. Otherwise you can make up your own little story to go with the picture.

Day 4

Day 5

Day 6

Day 8

Day 10

Day 11

Day 12

Day 14

Day 15

It Is a Big Deal

Here it is 5 days into November and I have failed to mention that it's National Diabetes Month.

I've said before that I would love to see a sea of gray (Gray, really? That's the color we got? Yep, we've just got to go with it.) in November much like the sea of pink we see in October. I'd like to sit down with whoever is in charge of Breast Cancer Awareness month and pick their brain.


Last November I asked everyone to post the diabetes ribbon in their sidebar. Even if you don't have a blog about diabetes, how about post the ribbon and at least mention it's National Diabetes Month.


So, here's the ribbon. Once again, I'd like you to copy, paste, and post.

Why should you blog about it? Why make a big deal about it?

A lot of people think they are just fine, you deal with it and move on. Some say, diabetes doesn't really affect me. I check my sugar and I give insulin and I move on. It's no big deal.

Problem is, it is a big deal.

** In the U.S., the number of deaths from diabetes is more than 180,000 each year – and climbing.

** In the U.S., the number of hospitalizations for diabetes is about 600,000 each year – and climbing.

** In the U.S., the number of people suffering from diabetes is about 16,000,000 – and climbing.

** Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that one in three American children born in the year 2000 will develop diabetes during the course of their lives

That's just in the US people, let's look at the rest of the world.


**Ghana: Over 3.2 Million People Die of Diabetes Every Year; Go read this article and see if you still think it's no big deal.

**A person in Zambia who requires insulin has a life expectancy of 11 years. A person in Mali can expect to live 30 months. In Mozambique a person with Type 1 diabetes will die within one year of diagnosis.

If I lived in Mozambique , Riley would be dead by now. Not only that, but he probably would have suffered long before he died.

I've heard it said that we shouldn't complain. There are much worse diseases, incurable diseases even. I'd like to remind you that diabetes is incurable as well. In places like Mozambique the diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes is just as much a death sentence as a diagnosis of cancer or AIDS.

**Globally, at least one person dies every 10 seconds out of the disease.

**High Blood Sugar a Global Killer; go to this study done by Harvard to learn more.

Here's a few more statistics for you:

** Every 10 seconds a person dies from diabetes-related causes.

** 3.5 million deaths are attributable to diabetes each year.

** Diabetes kills as many people each year as HIV/AIDS

** Type 1 diabetes is growing by 3% each year. It is increasing the fastest among very young children.

** More and more children are developing Type 2 diabetes.

Let's touch on some complications that can develop from this disease, even if you have what is considered "good control", these complications can still happen to you.

**Diabetes is the leading cause of heart attack, stroke, blindness, amputation, and kidney failure.

**Diabetic retinopathy causes 12,000 to 24,000 new cases of blindness each year.

According to Prevent Blindness America (PBA), there are 5.3 million Americans age 18 and older with diabetic retinopathy. Diabetic retinopathy affects the tiny blood vessels of the retina, causing them to break down, leak or become blocked. Unhealthy new blood vessels may also grow, distorting vision over time.

**2 out of every 3 people with diabetes will die from heart disease or stroke.

**4 people's legs are amputated every 3 seconds as a result of diabetic complications.


Yes, it is a very big deal, and it's our job to make people aware.

Please help spread the word. Feel free to use any of the statistics that I have posted here.

Here are some links where the information came from.

http://www.kids-kount.org/

http://www.dentalplans.com/Dental-Health-Articles/Soaring-Diabetes---25,000-Cases-Of-Blindness-Every-Year.asp

http://www.unitefordiabetes.org/assets/files/UNR_key_messages_20060828.pdf

(Edit: Allison pointed out that the Unite for Diabetes circle is much cooler than the boring gray ribbon. I agree. So, if you'd rather use the circle, here it is.)

Copy, paste, post.

How About Some Dessert

A few weeks ago I received an email asking me to review a cook book. I got a free cookbook out of the deal, so of course I said yes.

It is entitled The Big Book of Diabetic Desserts: Decadent and Delicious Recipes Perfect for People with Diabetes.

I've read through it and find it to be quite useful. I am all for a cookbook that gives you the carb count of the food you're preparing. It sure beats guessing, or trying to add everything up yourself. I also like it because it uses healthier ingredients.

The first recipe I will probably try for myself is Apple Pie with Cinnamon Crunch Topping. (40g carbs per serving)

Below is the description that was sent to me along with a recipe from the book.

FROM CHOCOLATE SOUFFLES TO BLACKBERRY-PECAN TARTS, NEW COOKBOOK OFFERS DOZENS OF SUMPTUOUS DESSERTS THAT ARE LOW IN SUGAR AND FAT

Whatever treat one's sweet tooth craves -- cakes, pies, cookies, puddings --decadent desserts are often the hardest thing to give up when on a diet.Whether someone is watching calories and fat, or is living with diabetes,limiting sweets has long been the rule -- and those who seek to substitute with sugar-free, fat-free versions of their favorite desserts are often sorely disappointed. This no longer need be the case.

THE BIG BOOK OF DIABETIC DESSERTS: Decadent And Delicious Recipes Perfect For People With Diabetes by dietitian and former Redbook food editor Jackie Mills, MS, RD(American Diabetes Association, November 2007) offers dozens of delicious concoctions -- all developed to be lower in carbohydrates, calories, and fat.

From Mocha Fudge Sheet Cake to Banana Meringue Pie and from Cappuccino Crème Brûlée to Crispy Oatmeal-Raisin Cookies, most of the recipes in THE BIG BOOK OF DIABETIC DESSERTS use a combination of granulated sugar, brown sugar,honey, or molasses along with the no-calorie sweetener sucralose (Splenda®).The limited amount of sugar makes the desserts mouth-watering and enjoyable,but with carb counts that enable them to fit into a balanced meal plan. In addition, all the choices in the new book contain less than 1.5 grams of saturated fat per serving and virtually no trans fat.

In THE BIG BOOK OF DIABETIC DESSERTS, Mills explains precisely how sugar functions in baked goods and in frozen treats, and offers tips for indulging one's sweet tooth in healthier ways -- such as brushing molasses, real maple syrup, or honey on the tops of warm muffins, loaf breads, or cakes;sprinkling a tiny bit of ordinary confectioners¹ sugar on a cake or batch of muffins; and using in-season, ripe fruit to accompany desserts, especially in place of high-fat and high-sugar frostings. She also includes advice for making the most of small servings of nuts and chocolate and for using spices to add wonderful flavors and aromas to desserts.

Among the tasty treats included in THE BIG BOOK OF DIABETIC DESSERTS is:

CHOCOLATE-DRIZZLED PEANUT BUTTER CAKE

Makes 9 servings € Serving size: 1 (2 1/2 inch) square For a lunch box, an after school treat, a bake sale, or a coffee break, this cake is a pleasing sweet for peanut butter lovers of all ages.

1 cup all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/8 teaspoon salt 1/4 cup natural peanut butter 3 tablespoons canola oil 1/3 cup granular no-calorie sweetener 1/3 cup light brown sugar 1 large egg 3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 ounce semisweet chocolate baking bar, chopped
1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Coat an 8 x 8-inch baking pan with cooking spray and set aside. 2. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to mix well. Set aside.
3. Combine the peanut butter and oil in a medium bowl and beat at medium speed until smooth. Beat in the no-calorie sweetener and brown sugar. Beat in the egg. Add the flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to the peanut butter mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.
4. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake 20 to25 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes.Remove from the pan and cool completely on the rack.
5. Place the chocolate in a small resealable zip-top bag and seal. Place the bag in a saucepan of hot water. Let stand 5 minutes or until the chocolate melts. Snip a tiny corner from bag and drizzle chocolate over the cake.
The cake can be covered in an airtight container and stored at room temperature up to 3 days.

Exchanges 1 1/2 Carbohydrate € 2 Fat Calories 193, Calories from Fat 86, Total Fat 10 g, Saturated Fat 1 g,Cholesterol 24 mg, Sodium 204 mg, Total Carbohydrate 23 g, Dietary Fiber 1g, Sugars 11 g, Protein 5 g

In addition to the dozens of mouth-watering recipes, Mills offers helpful guidelines for better baking -- advising buying the proper pans(shiny-surfaced, heavy-gauge aluminum), using parchment paper, and stocking one¹s kitchen with pastry brushes, offset spatulas, and a cookie scoop. She also offers pointers for creating low-sugar, low-fat desserts, including tips on: how to test for doneness (the same timing and visual cues don't work with low-sugar baking as they do with traditional baking); how to work with a more delicate, low-fat pie crust; and how to store baked goods made with sugar substitutes (they stale faster).³You can and should enjoy desserts without feeling that you're having something second rate or that tastes Œgood for you,¹² writes Mills.

THE BIG BOOK OF DIABETIC DESSERTS offers desserts so satisfying and delicious, they are ideal for anyone craving a sugary indulgence -- whether or not they need to watch their carbohydrates, calories, and fat.

# # #ABOUT THE AUTHOR JACKIE MILLS, MS, RD contributes to many national magazines, including Cooking Light, Family Circle, Cottage Living, and Coastal Living. She was the recipe developer for the American Medical Association Type 2 Diabetes Cookbook and has contributed to Weight Watchers cookbooks and Christmas with Southern Living annual cookbooks. Mills is the former food editor at Redbook magazine and worked as an associate food editor at Southern Living magazine. She lives in New York City.

Funny Man

This is my favorite comedian of the moment. His name is Daniel Tosh.

I hope you enjoy.

(This blogging on the weekend thing is harder than I thought.)

Little Jack Sparrow

Excuse me, I meant Little Captain Jack Sparrow.

Captain Jack without his hair.

Holden went as a basketball player. (Just kidding, he was just getting back from basketball practice.)

Johnny Depp doesn't have anything on my baby.

He even won a costume contest.

His sugars were pretty good most of the day, especially considering he ate a cookie, a cupcake, and a brownie throughout the day. I'm glad Halloween is only one day a year.

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I have 11 days worth of pictures up over at Diabetes 365. Check them out.

Fired Up

I found the link to this article over at Candy At Midnight.

The article uses statements such as: "I'm more astonished at the parents who waddle down wide suburban streets, diabetic and obese..." and "Some of these overweight parents are so out of shape, they can barely huff their way through a four-block neighborhood before needing to head back home for their nightly insulin shot."

I am so sick and tired of all diabetics being painted with the same brush. And, I'm tired of people with diabetes being blamed for thier disease, be it Type 1 or Type 2.

Here is my response to the article. If you have time, I'd like to see your response as well.

Before you start spouting off about diabetes and obesity, you should get your facts straight.

First off all people that are overweight do not have diabetes. Secondly, all people with diabetes are not overweight. Yes, sometimes lifestyle factors enter into Type 2 diabetes. But, sometimes it does not.

I am in favor for getting rid of Halloween altogether if that's what you want. But, singling out certain people (ie: diabetics) to get your point across was both rude and ignorant.

Also, if you're going to write about a disease that is such an "epidemic" then you should get your facts straight.

There are two types of diabetes. Type 2 is what you are so stereotypically referring to in your article.

My son has Type 1 diabetes. He was diagnosed when he was only 3 years old. He didn't eat too much sugar as a child nor has he ever been overweight. What happened is that his body turned against him and destroyed the insulin producing cells in his pancreas.

Because of this he pricks his finger an average of 12 times a day to test his sugar. He wears an insulin pump attached to him by a needle 24 hours a day seven days a week. He's only 5 years old. Neither he nor I did anything to cause this disease. Articles like yours perpetuates the myth that all people with diabetes are lazy sloths and are to blame for their disease.

When you paint all diabetics with the same obesity brush you are doing a disservice to my child and the millions of other adults and children that have to deal with Type 1 diabetes every day.

Happy Halloween

Halloween is not a favorite amongst the parents of kids with D. It complicates things a bit. But, Riley is excited and he'll be happy to eat one little piece of candy at the end of the night.

I wish everyone a safe,happy, low carb as possible Halloween.

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I thought some of you might find this list to be helpful. I found it on the CWD site.

Carbohydrate Values for Common Candies
Candy

Size/Package Carbs (g)

3 Musketeers 16 gram fun-sized bar 12g

3 Musketeers 2.13 oz bar 46g

Baby Ruth 2 oz. bar 37g

Baby Ruth 1 fun size 17g

Blow Pop sucker One sucker 13g

Butterfinger 2 oz. bar 41g

Butterfinger 22 gram-fun sized bar 15g

Candy corn 15 pieces 15g

Dum Dum suckers One sucker 5g

Gummy Bears 11 pieces 30g

Heath Bar 1.4 oz. bar 25g

Hershey's Almond 3 minis 15g

Hershey's Almond 1.45oz. bar 20g

Hershey's Kisses 6 pieces 16g

Hershey's Milk Chocolate bar snack size 10g

Jolly Rancher 1 piece 6g

Kit Kat bar 3 piece bar 10g

KitKat 1.5 oz. package 6g

Licorice 3 6-inch Twizzlers 15g

M&M's "Halloween" mini box 10g

M&M's, plain mini pack 15g

M&M's, plain 1.69 oz bag 34g

M&M's, peanut mini pack 13g

M&M's, peanut 1.74 oz bag 30g

M&M's, peanut butter 1.69 oz bag 27g

Milky Way 2.15 oz bar 43g

Milky Way fun-sized bar 14g

Nestle's Crunch 1.5 oz 28g

Nestle's Crunch 4 mini bars 26g

Reese's Cups 2 regular-sized 1 oz cups 18g

Reese's mini cups 4 1-oz mini cups 16g

Skittles 15 pieces 15g

Skittles mini pack 17.5g

Snicker's fun size 12g

Snickers 2.07 oz. bar 36g

Snickers 20-gram fun-sized bar 12g

Starburst 4 pieces 16g

Sweet Tarts mini packs - 5 packs 13g

Tootsie Pop 1 pop 16g

Tootsie Roll midgets 12 30g

Tootsie Rolls 2 bars 23g

Twix 2 2-oz. cookies 37g

Warheads 5 13g

Whoopers 8 Pieces 15g

Whoppers 1 small pouch 16g

Wonka Pixie Stix Each (about 6 in. in length) 2g

The Magazine Article

I don't know why I didn't mention it on here before. (An email yesterday reminded me of it.) But, back in May there was an article in Diabetes Self Management magazine about blogs. And, My Son Has Diabetes was one of the blogs that was featured.

The article was written by the OC's own Allison. Other OC'ers mentioned are George, Amy, Kerri, and Rachel.

If you get a chance check it out and then take time to give Allison a pat on the back for writing such a great article.

To read other articles from Diabetes Self Management go here. I actually ordered a subscription to the magazine and have found a lot of useful articles there.


(One more plug: Beth has now created a website for Diabetes 365. If you get a chance check it out too.)

Diabetes 365 Project

A few days ago I signed up to do the Diabetes 365 Project. If you haven't heard of it yet it's a project being administrated by Beth and Bernard to promote awareness of diabetes.

It's a project done in pictures. What you are asked to do is to snap a picture related to diabetes every day for 365 days. It's really not as hard as it seems. Diabetes is always there, so there seems to always be a photo op.

These are my first 3 pictures.

Feeling Low; Day 1, October 22, 2007


This is one of the pictures I took when doing the Word in Your Hand Project. Riley's sugar was 59 at the time. You can see it in his eyes.

When a person's sugar goes low, they must have a fast acting carb (sugar) ASAP. Untreated lows can lead to seizures and ultimately death.

There is no cure for diabetes.

Off To School; Day 2, October 23, 2007

Riley's book bag packed for school. His meter case is hanging out of the pocket.

It is more important that he have his blood sugar machine than his books. He tests his sugar an average of 12 times a day.

There is no cure for diabetes.

Site Change Day; Day 3, October 24, 2007

Every three days we must change the needle on Riley's pump.

This is a picture of the old infusion set that I removed. If you'll look closely at the cannula you will see that it is pink. It should be clear. It has blood in it.

That might help explain why Riley's sugars ran high most of the night. He probably was not receiving all of his insulin.

There is no cure for diabetes.

If you'd like to sign up go here. You will need to make a flickr account if you don't already have one.

There is also a link in my sidebar for the project as well as a link just to look at my pictures.

(Side note: If you haven't heard of the Word in Your Hand Project go to tudiabetes and check it out. And, for you parents out there the theme this week is children, so submit your pictures and you might win a prize.)

Im Not A Idiot

Your Language Arts Grade: 100%

Way to go! You know not to trust the MS Grammar Check and you know "no" from "know." Now, go forth and spread the good word (or at least, the proper use of apostrophes).

Are You Gooder at Grammar?
Make a Quiz

I just wanted to prove that Im not the idiot that I appear to be on this blog. I no I make many a grammatical arrow on hear. But, I'm actually a sticker win it comes to grammer and stuff like that there.

Im glad I found this quiz. Just this morning I typed "It takes too much time and I question it's accuracy." in a blog comment. I really need to proofreed more before hitting "publish".

Why Be Different?

Yesterday I found this email in my inbox:


"...while at first I was encouraged that you'd found an outlet to talk about your son and his disease and your feelings, I was quickly unnerved by your post titled, "A Disjointed Post".

It didn't take much more reading until I realized that this was an ongoing theme. Do you have something against Type II diabetics? Do you really feel that they deserve a cure less than Type Is?? Because with very little reading through the lines, that is what you seem to be implying. You also seem to be saying that while your son, who I believe does deserve a cure and doesn't deserve this disease, didn't do anything to get this disease, that Type II diabetics are sick and it's their fault. And that they are all old people. As a nurse I wouldn't expect you to be so one-sided."


To tell you the truth I was pleased to see it. First, because the author chose to reveal who they are. And, secondly, because I thought it was nice to debate it in a private forum rather than in my blog comments. I love a debate, but only if those participating are going to be adults about it.

Here is my response:

"I did not in any way mean that those with Type 2 do not deserve a cure nor did I mean to imply that those with Type 2 caused it themselves. I am a nurse and probably about 80% of my patients are diabetic (all of them Type 2). So, I see what type 2 is like also. Also, you are right, not everyone with Type 2 is old, just like every one with Type 1 is not young. I am also a member of tudiabetes and see many Type 2s on there that are both old and young.

Actually, if you go to this post you'll see that I said myself that those with Type 2 did not cause their disease. My grandmother and dad are both Type 2.

The point I was trying to get across is that Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes are NOT the same disease. I am assuming that you (or someone close to you) has Type 2 diabetes. So you probably know that Type 2 diabetes makes an individual unable to effectively use the insulin that their pancreas is creating, an insulin resistance if you will.

Type 1 is caused when an auto immune response in the body kills the beta cells in the pancreas (the cells that produce insulin). So, those with Type 1 don't produce any insulin at all. If my son went just one day without insulin injections he would die.

I'm not saying Type 1 is worse. I don't even want to debate that. But, you must understand that since my son has Type 1 that is where I will push for a cure. While a cure for Type 2 would be great, it would not help my son at all. He doesn't have insulin resistance. He doesn't make insulin at all. I feel that by lumping both types of diabetes together it diminishes the possibility of my son receiving a cure.

Secondly, when I said that Type 1 is not you grandmother's type of diabetes it was because I get comments from people all the time whose grandmother have Type 2 so they think they can tell me what my child can and cannot eat. While those with Type 2 may have to limit their carb intake to help control their sugars, those with Type 1 can pretty much eat whatever they want as long as they cover it with insulin.

Of course, I think people should keep their opinions to themselves about what anyone is eating. Would they tell a morbidly obese man in McDonalds that he shouldn't be eating that Big Mac and fries? Probably not. Why does someone feel the need to tell my 5 year old he's being bad when he eats certain things?

So, that is where I'm coming from. There was no ill will wished towards those with Type 2. As I said, my son has Type 1, so that is where I'm pushing for a cure. But, that doesn't mean I don't want those with Type 2 to be cured also. It's just that the cure is not going to come from the same place because they are caused by different things. To me it's like someone saying, " I donated to breast cancer research so I don't need to donate to leukemia research. " You see, they are the same, yet different.

Again, thank you for your comment. I think it is great that you took it upon yourself to email me. I wish more people would do that when they feel passionate about something."

I just wanted to post this because I realized that someone else could read my disjointed post and perceive the same thing. That is not what I want. I am not looking to push those with Type 2 to the side.

I do believe, however, that it is not helping either type by lumping the two together.

(The author of the above email replied with a very nice email this morning. He/she also gave me permission to use their email in this post.)

Email Ellen Degeneres for Diabetes

I mentioned a couple of posts ago about emailing The Ellen Degeneres Show to make her aware that November is National Diabetes Month and also to let her know that World Diabetes Day is November 14.

Bernard took it upon himself to do this also. So, why don't you try it too? My goal is to create awareness about this disease. If we can at least get her to talk about diabetes on World Diabetes Day that is a step in the right direction.

Bernard posted his letter on his blog. Mine started out praising her for creating awareness about breast cancer during October. Then, I spoke of the difference between Type 1 and Type 2 and why a cure must be found.

I also made them aware of World Diabetes Day and listed a link.

Email Ellen. What's it going to hurt? It's just a few minutes out of your time and who knows the impact it could have.

Also, if you have any other shows you think might be responsive let me know and I'll send them a letter too.