by DeAnn Carpenter, Diabetes Program Manager
The fourth Tuesday in March is dedicated to the American Diabetes Association Diabetes Alert Day - a “wake up” day to alert our nation about the growing number of diabetes cases and how this affects our healthcare.
Diabetes is lowered or absent insulin production leading to high blood glucose readings or hyperglycemia. The main classifications of diabetes are Type 1 (an autoimmune response leading to lack of insulin production), Type 2 (inability to use insulin effectively due to insulin resistance) and Gestational Diabetes. Type 2 diabetes accounts for more than 90% of diagnosed diabetes.
According to the Center of Disease and Control (CDC), more than 34 million Americans (or 10.5% of our population) have diabetes. Each year, 1.5 million Americans are diagnosed with diabetes. Seniors age 65 and older account for 26.8% (or 14.3 million) of Americans with diabetes. Diabetes can lead to multiple health problems including heart attack, stroke, amputation and end-stage renal disease. In 2017, the total cost of diabetes to our national healthcare system was estimated at $327 billion.
In Nebraska, 8.8% of the adult population (or 127,000 adults) have been diagnosed with diabetes. Another 36.2% of the adult population (or 522,000 Nebraskans) have pre-diabetes. Pre-diabetes is elevated blood glucose readings higher than normal but not high enough to be diabetes. Pre-diabetes increases your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. These numbers indicate that more than 45% of adults in Nebraska are directly affected by diabetes or pre-diabetes.
Now is the time to find out if you have diabetes or are at risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. A simple blood test at your primary care provider can alert you to high blood glucose readings.
A simple risk assessment test can let you know if you are at risk for developing Type 2 diabetes. Take the time to complete the ADA Risk Assessment Test at Risk Test | ADA (diabetes.org) https://www.diabetes.org/risk-test.
Lifestyle changes can prevent or delay the onset of Type 2 diabetes. Schedule an appointment with your primary care provider if you have concerns about diabetes. Take the steps needed to improve your health and decrease your risk for diabetes or diabetes related complications.
If you would like to learn more or have other questions contact the Mary Lanning Diabetes Program at 402-461-5318 or see www.marylanning.org/our-services/diabetes/diabetes-education/