Guest Post: Diabetes Risks for the Pushing Thirtyy Crowd
July 26, 2012 at 7:31 am | Posted in Life and Living | 1 CommentTags: diabetes, health
I don’t often post articles about health. The truth is that I’m the type of person who likes to ignore any sign of illness (much to the dismay of my colleagues during cold season). But as I have gotten older, I have become more in tune with my body and knowing when things aren’t right. Yet still, there is so much I just don’t know about. What follows is a guest post from the experts over at Drugwatch.com about a specific health concern plaguing millions.
According to the American Diabetes Association, 25.8 million adults and children in the United States have diabetes. Approximately 1.9 million people between the ages of 20 and 65 were diagnosed with diabetes in 2010. In fact, 11.3 percent of this age bracket has diabetes. Diabetes does not discriminate based on race or age. For people between the ages of 24 and 32, diabetes is becoming a prevalent problem, so people of this age group should become familiar with the risks.
Type I diabetes tends to appear between infancy and young adulthood. This does not mean that it cannot develop at any time throughout life, but this is just when it is most common. When people develop type I diabetes, generally it is an autoimmune disorder that happens due to genetics or environmental factors. A person is at greater risk of having this form of diabetes if he or she has a parent with disease.
For individuals between the ages of 24 and 32, type II diabetes is also a concern, and in some cases, a controllable concern. Obesity and being overweight contribute to this age bracket developing diabetes. Being overweight also affects diabetes health, since weight issues can worsen the condition. In order to improve diabetes health, a patient should eat a healthy diet consisting of low-carb foods, high-fiber foods and plenty of fruits and vegetables. A patient should also exercise regularly to maintain a healthy weight.
Another diabetes risk factor for people between the ages of 24 and 32 years of age is becoming pregnant. When a woman develops diabetes as a result of pregnancy, it is known as gestational diabetes. Although a patient with gestational diabetes will still need to manage her diabetes health, the disease generally will go away once the woman has given birth.
Patients in this age group who are inactive increase their risk of diabetes. Not only does exercise help to manage a person’s weight, but it also assists with managing diabetes health. In addition, being active plays a role in making cells more sensitive to insulin.
When a person between the ages of 24 and 32 has signs of prediabetes, his or her chance of developing diabetes is increased. Thus, it is important to have regular blood sugar screenings to detect elevated glucose levels. Early detection can assist a person in making the proper lifestyle modifications to prevent prediabetes from turning into a full-blown case of the disease.
Many type II patients required medication, in addition to diet and exercise. Patients should consult with their doctor before usage of any medication and be aware of the serious side effects before they take anything new.
For example, the diabetes drug Actos has been linked to an increased risk of congestive heart failure and bladder cancer. These conditions have led the FDA to issue a black box label warning on the product, and have led many users of the medication to file an Actos lawsuit against the manufacturer.
Although diabetes does not discriminate based on race, Hispanics and African-Americans have a greater chance of having diabetes. As of 2011, 12.6 percent of non-Hispanic African-Americans and 11.8 percent of Hispanics had diabetes. On the other hand, only 7.1 percent of white Americans had diabetes. This means that people in this particular age bracket who are either Hispanic of African-American should monitor their blood glucose levels even more than white Americans, since ethnicity does heighten one’s risk of developing this condition.
Elizabeth Carrollton writes about defective medical devices and dangerous drugs for Drugwatch.com.
Dreaming of Junk Food
March 29, 2011 at 7:27 am | Posted in Playing with Food | 8 CommentsTags: fast food, food, health, junk food, McDonald's
Have you been in a fast food place recently? Have you eaten a bag of chips lately? Maybe you have, and maybe you’ve felt the way I do after I give in to one of these rare cravings — completely unfulfilled and regretful.
I remember going to McDonald’s as a kid, and even as a teen. I’d get a happy meal, and then I’d get the #4 when I was older (the McChicken sandwich meal) and I’d eat it happily. In my later teens, we’d go to the McDonald’s drive-thru (backwards) at 3 AM after returning from the club, to fight off the munchies. I never regretted it back then.
I don’t know when it happened exactly, but now every time I eat fast food, I immediately regret it. I get lured in by the thought that it’s going to be just as tasty as it was when I was young, only to find a dollar cheeseburger sitting like a rock at the pit of my stomach. Why does it hurt so bad and yet, is so hard to resist?
I rarely indulge or crave fast food. It’s usually when I’m on the road and there are limited options that I actually partake in the fast food eating culture that is America. I work right next to a Pop-eye’s*, a McDonald’s, a Dominos, and a Whopper Bar (Burger King’s newest venture) and if I eat out I typically choose the falafel place, the potato stand, or somewhere I can get salad or soup (occasionally I’ll spring for something ethnic like Thai food or sushi or empanadas).
But every so often the chicken nuggets call out your name. And every so often you see a bag of Cheetos and you can almost taste the orange goodness on your fingers. And every so often you crave the innocence of eating things with no nutritional value whatsoever. Because every so often, you want to be that kid chasing down the ice cream truck again, or getting a ChocoTaco at the snack bar after playing a round of butts up. Every once in a while, you need to eat like nothing matters, because at that moment nothing does. Nothing but the taste of happiness and promise. You can worry about the stomach ache later.
*note: as I write this I have gotten word that the Pop-eye’s near by job has been shut down by the Department of Health. If that’s not a warning to you, I don’t know what is!
The Fight to Stay Fit
December 2, 2010 at 7:32 am | Posted in Fashion, Fitness and Beauty | 19 CommentsTags: fitness, gym, health, weight
There is always an excuse, always a reason not to work out. It takes real effort and determination nowadays for me to prioritize fitness. But it wasn’t always this way.
There was a time when I worked at the local gym. I worked out five days a week: a half hour on the elliptical, then on to the weights and abs, alternating days between upper and lower body. I had things going well.
In college, there was an added bonus to working out. I could get credit towards graduation! I took water aerobics, kick boxing, and weight training classes, and then I taught weight training. I really loved working out, particularly lifting.
Just last week I joined the gym for the first time in three years. Yes, I went THREE YEARS without a proper fitness routine. When I started working full time, I found it hard to fit fitness into my schedule, and it only got worse from there. After I got my dog, he demanded a lot of attention. Being out of the house ten hours a day, I couldn’t stand being apart from him any longer, so I went home and walked my puppy.
I did try to find a fitness routine that worked from home. I bought a body bar, a yoga mat, and ankle weights, and being a self-proclaimed expert in weight training, I knew I could make use of these items. But I’m not the type of person who can just up and lift weights in my apartment. I need to be out of the house, but it also needs to be convenient for me. Plus, have you ever tried to work out with a dog near you? It doesn’t turn out so well. I did try running this spring, but then it just got too hot and a week long business trip through me off course.
I really enjoyed classes, so I tried finding some kind of class I could take without joining a gym. I was very close to signing up for a pole dancing class, but that fell through.
I reasoned that I get enough exercise. I walk the dog a mile and a half a day and go up and down the 40 stairs it takes to get into my apartment several times a day. I can still wear the same pants I wore in college. I am fine.
But here’s the truth — the real reason why many people work out. They have a fear of gaining weight. And rightfully so. You can’t have your cake, eat it, and stay thin while sitting on your ass. I got real into working out in college for fear of gaining the freshman 15 (I didn’t) and as I get older I know it will only get harder to keep my size down.
So now the dog is no longer a puppy and with the live in boyfriend, he gets plenty of attention. I can get back to me now. No more excuses.
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