Type 2 Diabetes

Last week, I wrote an article about a high-school friend of mine that had Type 1 (childhood) diabetes. I learned some important lessons about people with chronic diseases and disabilities from that friendship. I learned some things, also, about myself. I grew from the experience, and for that I'm grateful.

I'm in the process of learning another lesson - one that is much more difficult for me, because it's personal. It's about me.

When I was younger, in my teens and early twenties, I was in really excellent shape. I ran cross-country and track in high school and played lots of different sports (softball, basketball). I wasn't exactly the prototypical jock, because I had lots of other interests besides sports, but I was definitely athletic. (In fact, my senior year in high school, I won the "Most Outstanding Student in Physical Education" award). I could run a mile in well under 5:00 minutes and a half-mile under 2:00 minutes. I spent over three hours a day, six days a week, running. Saturdays were what we called "LSD" days. In this case, LSD stood for "long, slow distance." On those days, I'd run between seven and fifteen miles, at a pace of around 6:30 to 7:00 minutes per mile. Yeah, I thought a 7:00 minute mile was slow. For someone in really good shape, who is used to middle-to-long distance racing, a 7:00 minute mile is slow.

So, because I was so active, (and had been thin all my life), when I graduated from high school I weighed about 150 pounds. When I graduated from college, I weighed about 170 pounds. When I got married, when I was 25 years old, I weighed actually a little less - about 165 pounds.

After college and after I was married, I started working as a professional software developer. My job requires that I sit on my back side for eight-plus hours a day, five or more days a week. To get to my work place, I drive about an hour each way. I don't have much time to exercise. What does that mean? Well, I now weigh about 80 pounds more than what I weighed when I graduated from high school. I never thought it could happen to me, the skinny, athletic kid: I'm fat. In fact, I fit the medical definition of obese.

I don't mean to offend anyone by using these terms. It's just a fact. I could say "overweight" or something else more politically correct. It wouldn't change the fact. I weigh a lot more than is healthy for someone of my build. As the old joke goes, I'm short for my weight.

So, why the embarrassing self-disclosure?

Well, Type 2 diabetes is, to some degree at least, a lifestyle disease. It is exacerbated, if not caused directly, by being overweight. The American Diabetes Association web site says, "researchers have discovered that being overweight can trigger the onset of diabetes because excess fat prevents insulin from working properly."

This isn't a trivial issue. Diabetes leads to lots of serious health problems, including heart disease, including heart attacks and strokes; eye problems, including blindness; kidney disease, up to even kidney failure requiring dialysis or transplant; nerve and joint problems; and serious skin infections.

I'm concerned about this. Being overweight increases my risk for diabetes. My maternal grandmother also has Type 2 diabetes, so I have a family history as well. The American Diabetes Association risk test says that I am at high risk for diabetes. I have other risk factors for heart disease. It just plain scares me, to be honest. I need to start doing something about this, right away.

How about you?

The American Diabetes Association site says that 16 million people have pre-diabetes, and another 17 million currently have Type 2 diabetes. Contrary to what you might have thought, 90 to 95% of the people that have diabetes have Type 2 (adult) diabetes.

Obesity is becoming an epidemic in the U.S. Almost 90% of the people diagnosed with diabetes are overweight, and nearly two-thirds of Americans are overweight. So, the statistics say that the vast majority of people in the U.S. are at significant risk for Type 2 diabetes. You might be at risk and not know it. Do you know what your Body Mass Index is? (Calculate it!) You should. A high BMI is a strong predictor of risk for diabetes and other health problems.

The good news.

Studies have shown that increasing physical activity and losing even modest amounts of weight can significantly improve the progression of Type 2 diabetes. The American Diabetes Association's Weight Loss Matters pages say this: "The recently completed Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) proved that type 2 diabetes can be prevented or delayed by keeping weight in control and by increasing physical activity."

Even small improvements help: "It's important to remember that losing even a relatively small amount of weight can make a real improvement in reducing your risk for diabetes and other serious conditions."

My plan.

I've decided that I must take action to improve my health. I'm seriously overweight and much too sedentary. It will take me quite some time to make significant improvements, but "a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." I will eat less and exercise more. I will lose weight. My health is too important to take for granted any longer.

If you are concerned about your weight and the health risks caused by being overweight, like I am, there are steps that you can take. Talk to your doctor or health care professional about it. He or she should have solid advice about how to proceed. The American Diabetes Association web site is also a great place to gather information on living a healthy lifestyle and what you can do to reduce your risk of diabetes and its complications. However, I encourage you to do, not just hear.

I'll be posting more on diabetes during the month of November, which is American Diabetes month. Posts won't be every day, since I don't have time to write that often, but at least once a week. Thanks to John Mudd at Blogcritics for bringing this to my attention.

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