Q: What is American Diabetes Month? A: American Diabetes Month is held in November to help raise awareness about diabetes, the seriousness of its complications and the importance of prevention and control of the disease. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 24 million Americans have diabetes. In 2007, another 57 million Americans were estimated to have pre-diabetes, where blood glucose levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be classified as diabetes. Diabetes is a major cause of heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, and new blindness in adults. It also can cause leg and foot amputations. The Iowa Department of Public Health states that complications from diabetes are the cause for three percent of all deaths in Iowa, which makes it Iowa’s 7th leading cause of death. Something can be done about these astounding numbers. Most diabetes is preventable and manageable. Eating healthier and exercising regularly have been shown to prevent or delay the onset of diabetes in individuals at high risk for contracting type 2 diabetes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends a healthy diet and 30 minutes of physical activity five days a week. These recommendations also have been shown to work to stem or reverse diabetes for those already diagnosed. Physical activity helps control weight, blood glucose and blood pressure, which are all linked to diabetes, as well as raise good cholesterol while lowering bad cholesterol.
Q: What is the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes? A: Type 1 diabetes, also known as juvenile or childhood diabetes, occurs when the body’s immune system mistakenly destroys the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin, which is needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy in the body’s cells. The disease is fatal without insulin treatments or a pancreas transplant. The American Diabetes Association states that five to 10 percent of diabetics have type 1 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes, also known as adult-onset diabetes, occurs when the body doesn’t produce enough insulin or the cells ignore the insulin, which causes a buildup of glucose in the blood instead of the glucose being transported into the body’s cells by the insulin. Type 2 diabetes is the most common form including about 90 percent of all diabetics. Type 2 diabetes can be treated with exercise and diet changes. Medications are often needed, as well, especially as the disease progresses. Type 2 diabetes can go undetected for years because the symptoms are less dramatic and more sporadic than type 1 diabetes. Due to increased child obesity and inactivity, more adolescents and young adults continue to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
Q: What is Congress doing to help Americans with diabetes? A: I am a member of the Senate Diabetes Caucus and meet with many young kids with diabetes each year to continue to learn more about their struggle with the disease. I have run in races for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation to raise awareness and money to help find a cure. From Congress, there needs to be a focus on wellness programs in any health care legislation because it’s likely to lead to better health, and it’s also likely to keep costs lower by keeping people well rather than to waiting until they get sick and then providing treatment. Diabetes is one of five chronic diseases that consume up to 75 percent of all the health care dollars spent. According to the American Diabetes Association, the average medical expenditure among people with diabetes is 230 percent of what it would be for those without diabetes. The annual cost of diabetes is projected to be $338 billion by 2020. Working together, we need to rein in the long-term health care costs of diabetes and the other chronic diseases through a greater focus on prevention and wellness and through improved coordinated care by the doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other health care professionals involved in the care for the patient.