Properly managing type 2 diabetes improves quality of life
More than 25 percent of Americans 65 or older have diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association. It’s the seventhleading cause of death in the United States.
“Type 2 diabetes is really an epidemic. We are talking about people being diagnosed in their 40s, and that’s still a lot of life to live and complications that can arise,” said Jennifer Beery, a registered dietician with Horizon West Nutritional Services in Orlando.
Those complications include heart disease, kidney disease, blindness and even limb amputation if diabetic conditions are not managed correctly.
“There’s also the financial impact of diabetes that manifests in costs for treatments, medications and hospitalizations, as well as lower productivity and lost work time,” Beery said.
Type 2 diabetes has a genetic predisposition but can also be influenced by unhealthy weight, lack of exercise, smoking and other lifestyle factors.
For people with diabetes, proper management of the condition can make a world of difference in quality of life.
“Diabetes is a chronic disease but, along with the prescribed monitoring and medications, can be managed with consuming regular, balanced meals and healthy between-meal snacks daily to maintain healthy glucose levels,” Beery said. “Simple ways to get active help, too. Taking a 10-minute walk in the morning and evening, and then doing things like yard work, can help manage symptoms and improve health with type 2 diabetes.”
Summer Spires is a diabetes education dietitian in Tampa who works specifically with people managing Type 2 diabetes. Spires says she first recommends a diabetes self-management education course that typically takes a year to complete and is covered by