For People with Diabetes, the Family Matters

with Ann Ruelle, Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator, Advanced Healthcare

Posted: Nov. 1, 2004

When an individual contracts diabetes, that can be terribly frightening. But when a person with diabetes goes under a doctor’s care and learns how to manage and control the disease, it doesn’t have to be so frightening.

That’s Ann Ruelle’s contention about a disease that can have serious consequences if untreated or inadequately treated. She is a Certified Diabetes Educator and Registered Dietitian for Advanced Healthcare.

Ann Ruelle, Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator, Advanced Healthcare "Because he was taught how to manage the disease, our son started eating better and exercising more often, and so did the rest of our family."

“People with diabetes are four times more likely to have a heart attack, or suffer from blindness, or kidney complications, or lose a limb,” she said. “Two-thirds of the people with diabetes will die from heart or stroke unless they take better care of themselves. But these dire consequences are not inevitable as long as they treat the disease and control it by managing their blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol.”

Family influence
A number of years ago, Ruelle’s son was diagnosed with diabetes.

“Because he was taught how to manage the disease, our son started eating better and exercising more often, and so did the rest of our family,” she said. “In an effort to control our respective weights, we all began making wiser nutrition choices and eating three meals a day. We started to take more time to exercise. In other words, we changed our lifestyle priorities.

“Actually, people with diabetes aren’t really asked to do more than what they should have been doing in the first place — watching their weight, eating correctly and getting adequate exercise,” she said. “Families can help motivate the members that have diabetes to do so, and in doing this, they can help themselves, too.

“My son is healthier than many of his contemporaries because he takes excellent care of himself,” Ruelle added.

The insulin or oral medications that are usually prescribed complement these lifestyle changes. “So managing one’s lifestyle correctly must be done.”

Pre-diabetes
About one year ago, Tommy Thompson, former governor of Wisconsin and now the nation’s Secretary of Health and Human Services, cautioned Americans that millions of them were pre-diabetic. Pre-diabetes means that blood sugar levels are above normal but below the level for diabetes.

The good news, said Ruelle, is if you are at risk for getting type 2 diabetes you can proactively reduce the risk of getting the disease and return blood sugar levels to normal. If your blood sugar is higher than normal but lower than the diabetes range, have it checked regularly.

“But you should be proactive to lower your chances of becoming diabetic. Exercise regularly, reduce fat and calorie intake and lose weight. That can help you reduce your risk. Lowering blood pressure and cholesterol levels also help you stay healthy and reduce your risk of heart disease. With modest weight loss and moderate physical activity, you can delay or prevent type 2 diabetes,” she explained.

National Diabetes Education Program
According to the National Diabetes Education Program, there are seven principles for controlling diabetes for life. The seven principles are:
Principle 1: Find out what type of diabetes you have.
Principle 2: Get regular medical care for your diabetes.
Principle 3: Learn how to control your diabetes.
Principle 4: Treat high blood sugar.
Principle 5: Monitor your blood sugar level.
Principle 6: Prevent and diagnose long-term diabetes problems.
Principle 7: Get checked for long-term problems and treat them.

For more information on diabetes education classes at Advanced Healthcare, call 888-709-2080 or 262-512-2880.

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