News, NGDOC News

Diabetes Advocates Protest Against High Insulin Prices

Leave a comment

When Frederick Banting discovered Insulin in 1922, he never thought it’s prices would be as high as what is obtainable today.

Source: T1International

Insulin is a vital drug that is needed for people living with diabetes to survive but the increasing prices have caused people to ration insulin doses and skip injections causing poor control of their blood sugar.
On Saturday, 9th of September, 2017, T1International, an advocacy group for people living with type 1 diabetes around the world and People of Faith for Access to Medicines (PFAM) along with other stakeholders led a demonstration in front of Eli Lilly and Company International corporate headquarters in downtown Indianapolis. The day for online action was September 8th, 2017.

“We spend more money on diabetes than on our house payments,” Indiana resident Erin Roberts said.
Mike Hoskins who was at the protest said on his blog that he was spending $700 per month to get 3 vials of insulin in 2015 and that was more than half of housing cost per month and he had to borrow from a friend.

Consumers of these products are frustrated and have come out in mass to express their feelings. Parents of children living with diabetes and other concerned persons participated in the protest. Some people lamented that they have to pick between buying their groceries and buying insulin.

Some protesters at the demonstration.
Source: T1International

The 3 main pharmaceutical companies producing insulin are Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk, and Sanofi and they’ve continually increased the prices of insulin.
March 2017 saw another increase of Eli Lilly’s insulin product ; Humalog and Humilin by 7.8 percent.

Lilly is said to have raised the price of its version of insulin by over 300% over the past seven years. A U.S. patient’s out-of-pocket cost for a month’s supply of Eli Lilly’s Humalog can be over $400 (About 144,000 Naira).

In July 2017 it was reported that Lilly had a 35% increase in quarterly profits: $1+ billion, on $5.82 billion revenue. Though Eli Lilly recently started a patients assistance program when people complained about the costs, it is still grossly inadequate as only a small number of people would benefit.

Humalog has seen a 1123 percent increase in price since June 1996.
The insulin makers have also argued that its costs a great deal for advancements to produce new and better insulin.

Photo credit : Business insider

An Eli Lilly spokesperson responded in an email saying, “We are pleased that people in the diabetes community are engaged in this issue, and demonstrations are one way to do so. It will take continued effort across the healthcare system to affect real change, and Lilly is committed to working with others to make it happen.”

People with diabetes are asking Eli Lilly for three things:
• Be transparent about how much it costs to make one vial of Humalog insulin
• Be transparent about your profits from each vial
• Lower the price of insulin

So many people are dying from diabetic ketoacidosis because they can’t afford insulin.
For a long time, Africa was thought to be safe from diseases called “diseases of affluence,” like diabetes which plague the Western world but this is now known to be false as there is an increasing statistic of people living with diabetes and this includes both rich and poor.

As at 2013, the Nigerian government was reportedly spending $500 million (78.5 million Naira at that time) on importation of insulin annually. Insulin access is still a major problem in developing countries too.

On the pages of Indystar on Saturday

You can still lend a voice to the cause via social media.
Hashtag is #Insulin4all . You can get more information on Facebook and other social media sites.

Hashtag

SPONSORING ORGANIZATIONS OF THE DEMONSTRATION:

T1International

People of Faith for Access to Medicines

Public Citizen 

Patients for Affordable Drugs

Information

Facts You Might Never Have Heard About Diabetes

Leave a comment

1. The earliest description of Diabetes is in an Egyptian medical papyrus called Ebers papyrus describing “too great amount of urine”

2. The term diabetes was first used by Apollinus of Memphis 250AD

3. The Greek Physician Aretaeus (30-90CE) recorded a disease that caused ex-cessive thirst, urination and weight loss. The word “diabetes” is Greek for “siphon” describing the excess urine.

4. Galen, a physician and philosopher in the Roman empire commented that he had only seen 2 cases in his career (probably due to better diet and life-style). Galen named the disease “diarrhea of the urine” (diarrhea urinosa).

5. The term “mellitus” or “from honey” was added by the Briton John Rolle in the late 1700s to separate the condition from diabetes insipidus, which is also associated with frequent urination. It is said that some physicians tast-ed the urine in early times to aid in diagnosis.

6. In 1910, an English physiologist Sir Edward Albert Sharpey-Schafer discov-ered that a component was missing from the pancreas of diabetics and he called it “insulin”.

7. Before insulin, the only treatment for type 1 diabetes was starvation, which was of course, ineffective, extending life for only a few years.

8. In 1921, Canadian physician Frederick Banting and medical student Charles H. Best discovered the hormone insulin in pancreatic extracts of dogs. One year later, Banting was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. At the age of 32, he was the youngest Nobel laureate ever in this category.

Charles Best and Banting

9. The first people to ever receive insulin were Frederick Banting and Charles Best – they injected insulin into each other’s arms to see if it was safe on humans.

10. Banting was bad at spelling and first spelt diabetes as “diabetus”

11. Banting never profited from insulin and gave the patent for free to provide insulin for all.

12. Friedrick Banting was honored by World Diabetes Day which is held on his birthday, November 14

13. Leonard Thompson, 14, a charity patient at the Toronto General Hospital, became the first person to receive and injection of insulin to treat diabetes in January 1922. He lived another 13 years before dying of pneumonia at age 27.

14. Before the 20th century, tasting urine was the test for Diabetes

15. In 1969-1970, the first portable blood glucose meter was created by Ames Diagnostics.

16. Diabetes also occurs in animals like dogs and cats. It is more common in the female dog and the male cat. It has also been reported in horses, dolphins, foxes and hippopotamus
17.

The blue circle is the universal symbol for diabetes. Amongst other things, it signifies unity showing our combined strength in diabetes campaign. It was designed in 2006 by the International Diabetes Federation. The blue border of the circle reflects the colour of the sky and the flag of the United Nations.

18. An insulin requiring individual would spend 29 percent of his monthly income on insulin in Nigeria with payment being mostly “out of pocket”

19. Currently oral hypoglycemic drugs are readily available in Nigeria but insulin is less so.

20. Common alternative medicine used by Nigerians is vernonia amygdalina (bitter leaf) with the belief that bitter taste would counteract the “ sweetness” of blood. Nigerian researchers have reported lowering of blood glucose in diabetic rats comparable to that diabetic rats on oral hypoglycemic drugs though more research in humans is needed in this area.

21. Inhaled insulin is an emerging 21st century innovation. Companies are also working on insulin tablets that can simply be placed under the tongue.

22. About 422 million people worldwide have diabetes and this is more in low and middle income countries. In 2012, it was the direct cause of 1.5 million deaths.

23. A Nigerian study found that gestational diabetes to occur in 2.98 per 1000 pregnancies.

24. A Harvard study showed that eating one serving of cooked oatmeal two to 4 times a week was linked to 14 percent reduction in type 2 diabetes risk

25. WHO says taking brisk , 30 minutes walk,5 days a week can reduce diabetes risk

26. Men with diabetes are at greater risk of erectile dysfunction than those without it.
27. People with diabetes can live long and healthy lives with their diabetes detected and well managed

28. Celebrities like Nick Jonas, member of Jonas Brothers was diagnosed in 200k but went public in 2007.

29. Halle Berry was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at 22 years old after she reportedly went into a diabetic coma.

30. About one third of people with diabetes do not know they have the it.

Reference
Diabetes in Nigeria – past, present and future by AO Ogbera

Be our guest blogger. Send your articles to thengdoc@gmail.com

Diabetes Education

Prediabetes : a point of no return?

Leave a comment

Diabetes is a condition where a person has high blood glucose levels due to problems with insulin production or utilization.

Insulin is an hormone produced by the Pancreas that helps to mop up glucose from the blood and mobilise it into tissues especially adipose (fatty) tissue and muscles.

Diabetes is a common word, but Prediabetes is less so.

The onset of type 2 diabetes is usually preceded by an asymptomatic preclinical state known as prediabetes.

Prediabetes is a condition where a person has higher than normal blood sugar level but not quite high enough to make a diagnosis of full blown type 2 diabetes. The progression from Prediabetes to diabetes may occur rapidly or over a couple of years depending on lifestyle modification.

The prevalence of prediabetes ranges in adults from 2.2% to 16.2% with a prevalence of 7.3% in sub-Saharan Africa.

It’s estimated that 90 percent of those with prediabetes are unaware that they have the condition. An estimated 86 million Americans have prediabetes, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. According to American Diabetes Association, Prediabetes alone increases the risk of heart disease and stroke by 50 percent. However, no statistics is available for the Nigerian population.

An international expert panel now recommends the A1C test ( which is the measure of blood glucose over the past two to three months ) to diagnose diabetes in everyone except pregnant women. Before now, diabetes was diagnosed by checking fasting or random blood glucose.

Researchers have shown that while one blood sugar test can be elevated at a particular time, the A1C test is a surer way of diagnosing diabetes. A1C of 5.6 and below is considered normal, 5.7-6.4 is termed Prediabetes and 6.5 and above is diabetes.

Checking fasting blood sugar is however still relevant and normal fasting blood sugar (before meal in the morning) levels is usually between 70-100 mg per dl. A blood sugar level between 100-125 is considered Prediabetes or Impaired fasting glucose while that from 126 and above is diagnosed Diabetes. Random blood sugar of less than 140 is considered normal, 140-199 is prediabetes while 200 and above is diabetes.

What Increases Your Risk of Prediabetes?

The eight risk factors identified by the American Diabetes Association include

Family history

Weight (especially abdominal)

Low physical activity

Age (more common in people above 45 years)

Race/ ethnicity ( More common in the African American, Hispanic/Latino, American, Indian, Asian American, or Pacific Islander)

A history of diabetes while Pregnant

Polycystic ovarian syndrome (presence of multiple cysts in the ovary)

Other factors like high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels.

Is Prediabetes Reversible?

It’s very possible for a reversal of a Prediabetic state by healthy diet and exercise. This shows a need for regular check up to regulate blood sugar early enough.

What can be done to reverse Prediabetes?

Loosing weight and increasing physical activity and health diet can reduce or prevent the rate of progression to diabetes. Diet and exercise should focusing on loosing 5-7 percent of weight .

An Harvard School of Public Health study showed that women who took a brisk 30-minute walk every day lowered their risk for diabetes by 30 percent.

Proper management of prediabetes is important to curb the imminent type 2 diabetes epidermic.

Uncategorized

HEALTHY DIET DURING RAMADAAN

Leave a comment

The month of Ramadaan is the 9th month of the Islamic calendar and regarded as a Holy month among the Muslim faithfuls. Allah (SWT ) in the Holy Quran made it compulsory for every Muslim of age with sound mind and body to fast from the Fajr(Dawn) to Maghreb(Sunset/Twilight)

Surah Al-Baqara, Verse 183-184:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ
أَيَّامًا مَّعْدُودَاتٍ فَمَن كَانَ مِنكُم مَّرِيضًا أَوْ عَلَىٰ سَفَرٍ فَعِدَّةٌ مِّنْ أَيَّامٍ أُخَرَ وَعَلَى الَّذِينَ يُطِيقُونَهُ فِدْيَةٌ طَعَامُ مِسْكِينٍ فَمَن تَطَوَّعَ خَيْرًا فَهُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّهُ وَأَن تَصُومُوا خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ

O you who believe! Observing As-Saum (the fasting) is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become Al-Muttaqun (the pious)
[Observing Saum (fasts)] for a fixed number of days, but if any of you is ill or on a journey, the same number (should be made up) from other days. And as for those who can fast with difficulty, (e.g. an old man, etc.), they have (a choice either to fast or) to feed a Miskin (poor person) (for every day).

image

But whoever does good of his own accord, it is better for him. And that you fast, it is better for you if only you know.
During
the fasting periods, no food or drink is consumed and thoughts as well as actions must be kept pure.

Muslims are required to eat the pre-dawn meal(Sahuur) and break their fast by sunset (Iftar ) with fruits and meal and may continue eating and drinking till the next Fajr.
Thus, it is important that good and wholesome meals be consumed in good proportions to maintain vitality.

It is common practice here in Nigeria, to often take “Swallows” (Okele) for Sahuur and lighter meals for Iftar since the Sahuur is to last through the day till  sunset. More often than not, such meals largely contain carbohydrates while other food classes are to a lesser amount.

The Sahuur should contain the food classes in right proportions to provide adequate energy that will last throughout the day and yet nutritious to the body without causing fatigue during the day.
Vegetables and fruits/natural fruit juices are a good complement.

It is advised that a cup of water at room temperature be taken because this will help mix with the already secreted gastric acid, overnight.

It is encouraged to break fast with fruits such as Dates or Oranges etc in concordance with the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad(SAW) and If none available, then water may be used. Dates are rich in sugars that are easily broken down and quickly absorbed into the body providing energy easily.

This is done prior to eating the Iftar meal, which will take longer time to digest. Carbonated drinks are discouraged because they liberate “gas” in the stomach which distends the stomach and can cause inconveniences during the Maghreb prayer that follows shortly afterwards.

Consumption of cold drinks at Iftar causes the gastric vessels to constrict and thus reduces blood supply to the stomach and this affects digestion negatively.
Rather, water a room temperature will be ideal, especially If you’ll be eating shortly after.

The choice of food ingredients should be aimed towards a balanced diet using fresh food items.

For vitamins and minerals, use fresh vegetables and fresh fruits and natural fruit juices, fresh whole grains. Avoid coconut because of its oil.

For dairy, low fat milk(skimmed milk).is good. Avoid whole milk, ice cream, cheese and full cream yoghurt.

For protein, lean meat, skinless chicken and turkey, moderate amount of prawns and crabs, beans and peas. Eggs for children and young adults and avoid “internal animal organs” and fried flesh(fish,meat, chicken or Turkey )etc

For carbohydrates, avoid fried potatoes and yam, pastries such as Doughnut, fried rice.

Avoid the use of butter and ghee in cooking. Avoid frying, rather you may boil or grill or bake the food items as applicable.

It is important to stay well hydrated during this fasting and avoiding large volumes of water at Sahuur will help attain this.
About 2-3 glasses of water Sahuur should be adequate when the meal contains juicy fruits like water melon.

Salty diets should be avoided and you should avoid putting much salt in your meal as it leads to dehydration.

With all that is said above, I hope I’ve been able to provide you with adequate information on eating healthy this Ramadaan. I wish you a healthy Ramadaan and I pray Allah accepts our efforts in this month as worship and make us of the successful ones. Aamiin.

Dr. Kazeem Adebowale D. is a blood donation advocate and also a pioneer of the “Heal the world foundation” and member of  “Curb cancer Initiative “.
He can be reached on qasimbilaalmusab@gmail.com.

Diabetes Education, Information

RAMADAN KAREEM

Leave a comment

Ramadan_Kareem_2_by_meanart

This is the period where our dear muslim friends, family and colleagues fast for a period of time. Fasting during Ramadan, a holy month of Islam, is an obligatory duty for all healthy adult Muslims and its duration varies between 29 and 30 days. Its timing changes with respect to seasons.

Depending on the geographical location and season,the duration of the daily fast may range from a few to more than 20 hours. Muslims who fast during Ramadan must abstain from eating, drinking, use of oral medications, and smoking from predawn to after sunset; however, there are no restrictions on food or fluid intake between sunset and dawn.

Most people consume two meals per day during this month, one after sunset, referred to in Arabic as Iftar (breaking of the fast meal), and the other before dawn, referred to as Suhur (predawn).
Now the question is, what food or fluid intake do one use to break or start this fasting.

Image+2

As we know, fasting is not meant to create excessive hardship on the Muslim individual.
Diabetes is a chronic metabolic disorder which may place one at high risk for various complications if the pattern and amount of meal and fluid intake is markedly altered.

Due to loss of energy, weakness and dehydration. Most people rush for food that contains carbohydrate. Foods like rice, yam, spaghetti etc, inorder to gain their strength back.

This is not right, it only increases blood sugar which makes one restless and dizzy, which only makes matter worse. So how can we live healthy, during this fasting period.

Image+1

1.) Water should be the first intake as soon as one wants to break fast. We must ensure we take as much as possible throughout the evening till dawn. It will help the circulation of blood in ones system, reduce dehydration and cleanse it. Avoid drinks with caffeine.

2.) Start meal with fruits. Fruits like watermelon, oranges,blueberries-Blueberries are awesome choice. They are packed with dietary fiber, vitamin C, and flavonoids. Flavonoids are phytonutrients and help to boost ones immune system and fight off infection. They could also help fight off bad cholesterol and keep the heart and arteries healthy.
Grapefruits-They are packed with antioxidants, especially in the ruby red variety. It lowers bad cholesterol by 20% and triglycerides by 17%.

3.) Take in enough protein. Due to not eating anything for over 17-20hrs, the body will be feeding on itself. So there is need to rebuild this areas. Source of protein that will be good includes;
Tofu-Even if not a vegetarian, tofu is a great product to integrate in diet. It is made from soy, which is high in niacin, folate, zinc, potassium, iron, and the fatty acid alpha-linolenic. This can turn into the hugely beneficial omega-3 fatty acid

Beans-Beans are a great alternative because they are high in fiber and protein. They are also packed with vitamins and minerals like folate, iron, magnesium, and potassium.

Also, other meals like brown rice, amala (instead of yam flour try plaintain flour), wheat flour( easily digested), non- starchy vegetables, fish, skinless chicken etc.

While the iftar meal is a celebration time, try not to overeat.
Keep sensible portions in mind and follow the same guidelines for healthy eating done during the rest of the year with emphasis on whole grains, lean sources of meat, fish and poultry and small amounts of heart healthy fats.

This Article is written by Damilola Shobiye a Student of Nutrition and Dietetics from Babcock University, Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Nigeria.
To be our Guest Blogger on the Nigeria Diabetes Online Community kindly send your article to us on thengdoc@gmail.com, follow us on @theNGdoc and like our facebook page www.facebook.com/NGDOC

Diabetes Education, Information, News, NGDOC News, Research, Society

Merck Diabetes and Hypertension Awards

Leave a comment

Merck Diabetes Award

All medical undergraduates and postgraduates are invited to apply for the

Merck Diabetes Award 2017
Theme: Every Day is a Diabetes Day

Please submit a concept paper about:

  • How to improve the awareness about Diabetes Early Detection and Prevention in your country.
  • How to encourage your society, scientific community, local authorities, media and relevant stakeholders to Think and Act on Diabetes Every Day.
  • Your ideas of developing new policies, strategies, social media campaigns and more.

 

Merck Diabetes Award 2017

is:

“Postgraduate Diabetes Diploma with University of South Wales. Winners will be invited to attend the Merck Africa Luminary on 24th-25th October, 2017 in Cairo, Egypt to receive the award”.

Merck Diabetes Award is being rolled out in many of the African and Asian universities as part of our commitment to building diabetes capacity and improving access to quality and sustainable healthcare solutions in developing countries.

The aim of Merck Diabetes Award is to create a Diabetes Experts Platform across the globe.

Please submit your one page concept paper to:
submit@merckdiabetesaward.com

Submission deadline is 31st July 2017

Entry requirements:

Postgraduate Diploma

Health professionals, both UK and overseas, with an honors degree or equivalent (including international qualifications) are eligible to apply for the PG Diploma Diabetes course online.

Non graduates are also encouraged to apply (applicants will be asked to submit a piece of work for assessment to confirm that they are able to work comfortably at degree level).

Applicants should submit copies of the following with their application:

  • qualification certificates
  • one written reference
  • English language qualification (IELTS 6.5 or equivalent) please see University of South Wales for further details

Merck Hypertension Award

All medical undergraduates and postgraduates are invited to apply for the

Merck Hypertension Award 2017

Theme: What the Healthy Heart needs

Merck Hypertension Award is being rolled out in many of the African and Asian universities as part of our commitment to building healthcare capacity and improving access to quality and sustainable healthcare solutions in developing countries.

The aim of Merck Hypertension Award is to create a Hypertension Experts Platform across the globe.

To raise the required awareness to control and prevent hypertension, countries need systems, policies and services in place to promote universal health coverage and support healthy lifestyles: eating a balanced diet, reducing salt intake, avoiding harmful use of alcohol, getting regular exercise and stopping the use of tobacco.

Please submit a concept paper about:

  • How to improve the awareness about hypertension control and prevention in your country.
  • How to encourage your society, scientific community, local authorities, media and relevant stakeholders to think and act on Hypertension Every Day
  • Your ideas of developing new policies, strategies, social media campaigns and more.

Merck Hypertension Award 2017
is:

“Postgraduate Diploma in Preventive Cardiovascular Medicine with University of South Wales. Winners will be invited to attend the Merck Africa Luminary on 24th-25th October 2017 in Cairo, Egypt to receive the award”.

Please submit your one page concept paper to:
submit@MerckHypertensionAward.com

Submission deadline is 31st July 2017

Entry requirements:

Postgraduate Diploma

Health professionals, both UK and overseas, with an honors degree or equivalent (including international qualifications) are eligible to apply for the PG Diploma Diabetes course online.

Non graduates are also encouraged to apply (applicants will be asked to submit a piece of work for assessment to confirm that they are able to work comfortably at degree level).

Applicants should submit copies of the following with their application:

  • qualification certificates
  • one written reference
  • English language qualification (IELTS 6.5 or equivalent) please see University of South Wales for further details

For more information visit Merk’s Official website

Diabetes Education, Information, Society, Uncategorized

MYTH 2: DIABETES IS A DEATH SENTENCE by Opawale Damilola

Leave a comment

We recently started the discussion about Myths and Facts on Diabetes. If you missed the last post, kindly click here.

Today, we will continue on the discussion

MYTH 2: DIABETES IS A DEATH SENTENCE

FACT

Diabetes is not a death sentence. We established the last time that diabetes is a serious condition and is presently not curable. However, a diabetes diagnosis does not mean that you have been given an “expiry date”. It simply means you have to pay more attention to your health than before. 

There are several people who have lived with the disease for many years, some several decades and still living normal healthy lives without complications. 

We have a few testimonials from some of them:

Miss O.O, 17 years old – “I have been diabetic for 5 years. My living has been managed through regular use of Insulin, daily exercise, controlled diet, regular blood sugar checks and regular clinic visits. I am living well and happy”

Mrs. A.C. 52 year old diabetic diagnosed 9 years ago – “Basically what keeps me going is that I take my medications regularly, I choose my food carefully and I attend clinic regularly”

Mr. J.S – “When I was first diagnosed with the disease, I went online and read articles to educate myself. Diabetes education was a life saver for me. I have relationship with my doctors and that has been of great help”

 I will make attempts to outline a few things people living with diabetes must do to ensure that they live healthy and without complications

1. Have a positive attitude: Many people die not because the disease killed them but because they allowed the diagnosis to overwhelm them. Make up your mind to be happy, positive and active regardless of the fact that you have the disease

2. Get informed – Get information from authentic sources (Your doctors, support groups, books). This will help you understand better about the disease and how it should be managed. 

3. Drug Compliance: Take your medications religiously. Let your doctors prescribe drugs for you.

4. Know yourself – You need to know yourself to be able to recognize signs of when your sugar is going too low (hypoglycemia) or too high (hyperglycemia) and you need to know what to do at those times.

5. Diet Control: Contrary to the old teaching that diabetics have to eat only unripe fruits and vegetables. Studies have shown that diabetics can actually eat most of the food every other person eats, only that they need to eat them in right proportions. It is advisable to eat more of food that are high in fibre and low in calorie. Your doctor should educate you more about this.

6. Regular exercise: This also helps to control your blood sugar better, reduce weight, slows down ageing and improves heart function. However, rigorous exercise is not advised. Exercises recommended include brisk walking, swimming, cycling, Dancing, Playing court games, etc. 

7. Regular Clinic visit

8. Regular blood sugar checks

9. Avoid cigarette and alcohol consumption. These can worsen the disease.

10. Weight loss

11. Participate in support groups. 

People living with diabetes will benefit a lot from family support. 

In conclusion, Diabetes is a serious health condition which may have devastating consequences if not properly managed. 

People living with the disease must be ready to take responsibility for their health and they can live normal healthy lives. 

Please feel free to drop your questions and comments.

Feel free to send your diabetes related articles to thengdoc@gmail.com

Dr Oluwadamilola Opawale is a medical practitioner with interest in Public health and preventive medicine. She has had a stint of experience from the famous St. Nicholas hospital as a clinician.

She is also the President of IBuildAfrica Foundation, an NGO that reaches out to female adolescents, helping them maximize their potentials environment and background notwithstanding.

She has a passion to teach people how to stay healthy by imbibing healthy lifestyle and choices. 

Uncategorized

Debunking Diabetes Myths. Part 1 by Damilola Opawale

Leave a comment

Myth 1: Diabetes is caused when a person consumes too much sugary food and soft drinks

Fact:

The cause of Diabetes goes beyond the consumption of sugary meals. 

Diabetes is caused by a combination of hereditary (inherited) and lifestyle factors.

Let me break it down

Diabetes, presently incurable, is a disease condition that occurs when the body cannot use glucose (smallest form of sugar) well. A large portion of the food we eat is converted to glucose which is the main source of energy needed to fuel the body’s functions.

Glucose leaves our intestine and enters in the blood. From the blood, it is moved to the body cells where it is needed to produce energy or stored up for later use.

The substance (hormone) in the body that helps to move glucose from the blood to the cells is called INSULIN.

Insulin works like a key that opens the doors on the cells to allow glucose in. Without Insulin, glucose cannot enter the cells, so it stays in the blood.

Insulin is produced by an organ in the body called PANCREAS.

In some individuals, this insulin (the Key) is not produced at all or produced in insufficient amount due to some abnormalities in the genes of the persons. Hence the doors on the cells cannot be opened for glucose to enter. This is called Type 1 Diabetes which commonly affects Children and Teenagers.

In some other individuals, Insulin (the Key) is present, but the Key holes (called Receptors) on the cells are faulty, so they don’t respond when Insulin tries to open them to allow glucose in. 

This is called Type 2 Diabetes which commonly affects adults.

As a result of inability of glucose to enter the cells in these individuals, glucose level in the blood becomes higher than normal and can continue to rise if nothing is done. 

High levels of glucose (sugar) in the blood and low levels of glucose (sugar) in the cells are the causes of all the problems that Diabetes cause.

From what we have discussed above, it is obvious that eating a lot of sugar is not the main cause of Diabetes. 

However, Diabetics (people who have diabetes) have to be careful with what they eat since there is a problem with the process involved in the use of glucose.

Being overweight has been found to increase the risk for developing Type 2 Diabetes and a diet high in sugar can contribute to weight gain. For this reason, it is generally advisable for everyone to carefully regulate their consumption of high calorie food (food that ultimately lead to high sugar in the body). 

Feel free to drop your comments, contributions and share.

#KnowledgeIsKey#


Feel free to send your diabetes related articles to thengdoc@gmail.com.



Dr Oluwadamilola Opawale is a medical practitioner with interest in Public health and preventive medicine. She has had a stint of experience from the famous St. Nicholas hospital as a clinician.

She is also the President of IBuildAfrica Foundation, an NGO that reaches out to female adolescents, helping them maximize their potentials environment and background notwithstanding.

She has a passion to teach people how to stay healthy by imbibing healthy lifestyle and choices. 

Diabetes Education, News, NGDOC News, Society

NGDOC D-Meetup 2017

2 Comments

The Nigeria Diabetes Online Community is organizing a D-Meetup for Children living with diabetes in Nigeria.
The aim of the D-Meetup aims to create an amazing experience for children living with diabetes in a medically safe environment and will run over a weekend.

The activities will centre around children living with diabetes between the ages of 12 – 21 years to meet and share their experiences with one another as they learn to take responsibility for their health status and also to create in them a “I can do it” attitude as they improve on their self-esteem.

wpid-aviary_1448913080416.jpg

This meetup will include meeting with People living with Diabetes Globally, Nutritionist, Paediatric endocrinologist; Tourism; Games; Dinner amongst others.

It also will foster their physical activities and more controlled access to food relative to their experience at home while monitoring a good glycemic control.


Interested in partnering with us contact us on ngdoc@gmail.com or ngdocdmeetup@gmail.com

Do you know any child living with diabetes within the age of 12 – 21 years kindly encourage them to fill the form to participate.

Are you interested in sponsoring this event or volunteering your time and talent to make this event a success? Kindly fill this form.

Uncategorized

Diabetes Hand Foundation application for MasterLab Leadership Institute.

Leave a comment

The diabetes hand foundation new MasterLab Leadership Institute will be an intensive, exciting, weekend conference featuring expert mentorship, leadership development, and social entrepreneurship workshops to support leaders implementing positive changes for the greater diabetes community.

MasterLab Leadership Institute is Seeking:
  • Passionate, driven leaders in the early stages of a project to improve life with diabetes.
  • Non-profits, small businesses, social enterprises, grassroots projects, or anything in between.
  • Applicants and projects that represent the diversity of the diabetes community: Type 1 diabetes, Type 2 diabetes, POC, LGBTQIA+, & international friends encouraged to apply.
Benefits of Attending:
  • 20 accepted Fellows accepted into the 2017 cohort will be given a fully-funded scholarship, and flown to the San Francisco Bay Area for an intensive weekend (March 31-April 2).
  • Fellows will attend hands-on workshops with expert mentorship from innovation experts, entrepreneurs, and non-profit leaders.
  • Fellows will learn how to refine their organizational model, use the lean startup method, sharpen their leadership toolkit, find sustainable funding, and increase their social impact.
Vision:

Through our work in the diabetes space, we’ve seen the need for more diverse community leadership, and sufficient support for those passionate leaders. Often, people touched by diabetes are under-represented in decision-making spaces and leadership roles. In addition, the Diabetes Online Community (DOC), previous MasterLab events, and community leadership have had an underrepresentation of people touched by Type 2 diabetes and people of color. This is in contrast to the fact that “…American Indians and Alaska Natives, black or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinos, and Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and other Pacific Islanders, have a higher prevalence and greater burden of diabetes compared to whites…” (ClinicalDiabetes Journal, 2012).

Through this program, our goal is to robustly support a diverse group of diabetes advocates and leaders that represent the full spectrum of the diabetes community – Type 1, Type 2, etc. We are looking for emerging leaders who are passionate about creating change, want support to advance their projects, and are driven to create meaningful impact.

Instructions for Applying:

Please see below for additional details; we hope you apply! Applications due February 15. Questions about the program not answered below can be emailed to Mandy Jones, Director of Advocacy, at mandy@diabeteshf.org.

For more information visit their website 

Connect | Learn | Relate