Belmont Village Quarterly Newsletter
on Senior Living

Diabetes Care - Getting to the Heart of the Matter

February is American Heart Month. This year, do your heart a favor by learning more about diabetes prevention and care. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) reports that 20.8 million children and adults in the United States have diabetes (approximately 7% of the population). Nearly one-third (6.2 million) are unaware that they have the disease.

According to the American Heart Association, people with diabetes are two to four times more likely to develop cardiovascular disease—the leading cause of diabetes-related death. Conditions typically found in people with type 2 diabetes that can lead to cardiovascular disease are outlined below:

· Insulin Resistance - A condition in which the body doesn’t respond efficiently to the insulin it produces. One in four people with insulin resistance develop type 2 diabetes when the body can no longer maintain normal insulin and glucose levels.

· Obesity - A major risk factor for cardiovascular disease that has been strongly associated with insulin resistance. Weight loss can decrease cardiovascular risk and insulin concentration and increase insulin sensitivity.

· Physical Inactivity - Exercise and weight loss can prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes, reduce blood pressure, and help reduce the risk of heart attack or stroke.

· Hypertension - Studies have shown a connection between hypertension and type 2 diabetes. Commonly found in combination, this one-two punch doubles the risk for cardiovascular disease.

· Cholesterol - Controlling blood lipids can reduce cardiovascular complications by 20%-50%, according to the ADA.

Statistics from the US Department of Health and Human Services suggest that pre-diabetes (also called impaired glucose tolerance—IGT) is on the rise in America. About 40% of adults aged 40-74 (41 million people)—had IGT in 2000. Newer data indicates that at least 54 million adults had IGT in 2002. People with IGT can be expected to develop diabetes within 10 years, unless the proper steps are taken to prevent or delay onset.

A major research study, The Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP), conclusively showed that proper diet and exercise sharply reduce the chance that a person with IGT will develop diabetes. The DPP results indicate that millions of high-risk people can avoid developing type 2 diabetes through diet, exercise and behavior modification.

Be your own Valentine—learn more about what you can do to prevent or control diabetes and give your heart the gift it deserves. For more information about Belmont Village Senior Living, please visit our website, www.belmontvillage.com.

More Resources:

http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/intro/index.htm
www.diabetes.org
www.americanheart.org/diabetes