Hey, how’s it going?

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Watched any TV lately?

Heck, I used to be one of those people who proudly bragged to anyone who would listen; “I don’t watch TV.”

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After one such announcement I was stunned when this woman said to me, “Hmmph, so you one of them smug bastards who too gooooood to watch tv.”

“Huh?” I questioned, caught off guard, “Well, um, yeah.”

Had a ton of reasons not to watch, all patterned to fit the situation of the moment. “I’m too busy.” “It’s mind-numbing drivel.” “Has nothing to do with my ‘getting ahead.’” “Personally . . . (pause for effect, while simultaneously rubbing chin) . . . I pursue more intellectual pursuits, per se.”

Your turn to say, “Huh?”

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Well, that was then

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Television has come a long way since she pounced. We now have multiple choices and thousand inch screens that bathe us in whatever information we choose to wallow in.

Ever notice that even though we have 500 channels to choose from, we still watch the same 5 or 6 channels religiously? Hmmm.

And even though I’ve beaten around the proverbial bush, this is a health related article.

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Today’s article is about, The Doctor Oz Show.

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My mom brought up yet again how I’ve shared my stuff with others most of my life, beginning with when I traded my new snow boots to Melvin Lee. I was in grammar school, probably third grade.

It was late 50’s. Mid-winter, lower Michigan, 3 feet of snow.

He only had one left boot and a sob-story. I bought into it. We traded for my two new boots, and for some reason I assumed mom would just run out and buy me another pair.

Imagine my surprise when I proudly announced, while displaying the lone left boot, “Melvin only had one boot, so I traded him for mine.”

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“You did What!” she said, as I witnessed a 360º neck spin way before .

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Who knew moms didn’t just “run out” and re-spend money on things they’d already bought. To his credit, Melvin brought me another left boot after mom called his mom. Seems he lost mine too.

Fast forward (tv term), fifty-plus years later, and I still have the trait. I love to share, and here’s my latest contribution to the cause.

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Tip:

Presbyopia = older eyes. (I have two of those) That’s not the original tip, but Doctor Oz just taught it, and I caught it.

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The Dr. Oz show comes on in my area at 11pm every weeknight. I’m on the East Coast.

If you’re at all concerned about your health, or know anyone who may need the information, (we all do) you really should take an hour and watch his show. Only one challenge. It can become addicting.

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Information: The Drug of Choice

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The Dr. Oz show is informative to a fault and entertaining to . . . boot. His laid back manner of teaching us about our health is great. That’s the only way I can say it. I learn something every night I watch his show.

If you are not watching Dr. Oz, you are doing yourself a disservice. But hey, if you do watch it and decide it’s not for you I’ll bet you know someone who watches TV; someone who needs the information.

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Couch Potatoes Untie! er . . . Unite!

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So let’s all share. Give someone a gift of health. Watching the Dr. Oz show is like being in an accelerated health and wellness class. You learn, you laugh, you get healthier, just by watching tv.

How easy is that?

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“Good Health and Success are a Lifestyle . . . Live Well,”
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CK Dillon

Contact: Charles@CreateVitality.Com

On the Web: Http://CreateVitality.Com

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I’m a Type 2 Diabetic: by Reginald D. Brown – Contributing Author

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Hello To my Baby Boomer friends,

My name is Reginald D. Brown.  I have been a type 2 diabetic since 1995 and I’d like to share my story with you about how I became a diabetic.

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The Beginning

In the Spring of 1995, I weighed 217 pounds.  I was 10 pounds overweight, so I decided to go on an exercise program to lose weight.

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For a full month, I lifted weights and jogged 3 times a week.  During this time, I began to lose weight rapidly.  I went down from 217 pounds to 181 pounds.  However, I started having issues with my health.

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Symptoms:

• I was urinating every 45 to 60 minutes.
• My vision started getting blurry.
• My feet and legs would cramp at night.
• I also started seeing blood in my stool.
• I had an awful thirst
• I craved anything sweet like orange juice, pineapple juice, and cranberry juice.
• I would drink up to a quart of juice at a time and still be thirsty.

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Something’s Not Right

I thought the weight loss was from my working out.  Finally I woke up from my denial and went to the doctor on Good Friday.  I took blood tests and it was revealed that my blood sugar level was over 400 mg.

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If I hadn’t gone in that Friday, I would have gone into a coma by Monday.  Reality set in.  I was a diabetic.

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My New Reality

The doctor prescribed 3 pills of Glyburide at 5 mg’s a day.  I did this for a 30 day period and then my blood sugar leveled off to an average 120 mg a day.  Then the doctor prescribed I only take one pill day and advised me that diabetes was a progressive disease and that I had to monitor my blood level every day.

Denial and Relapse

Since I was feeling well, I thought the one pill a day was all I needed.  So, I went back into denial with bad eating habits and not exercising like I should.  I didn’t even use the blood sugar monitor the doctor provided me.

Within 2 weeks, I started having the same symptoms as before.  I tested my blood sugar and was shocked when the glucose monitor read 258 mg.

Consequences

I went back to the doctor. He chastised me for not following instructions as he wrote a prescription for 3 pills of Gylburide at 5 mg’s a day.  I promised to be proactive in my diabetes care and not re-active when I was ill. Within a day or so, my blood sugar levels were at an acceptable average of 120 mg.

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Hint: Doctors want to see an average blood sugar level of between 90 and 120 mg. I still had a bit to go, so I tried the following tip:

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Here’s a tip for my Type 2 diabetic friends:

Don’t eat White Bread, Rice or Potatoes for One Week . . .

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If you follow that tip, along with your medical professional’s advice, you should lose a few pounds and your blood sugar levels should go down to manageable levels.

Try it  and email me with your results.

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For Me Contracting Diabetes was Inevitable

All the ingredients were there: Working out and exercising actually contributed to accelerating my diabetes to becoming full-blown;  On my Father’s side of the family, he had two sisters who were type 2 diabetics; I also had set into a sedentary lifestyle and was eating everything in sight.

So, it was inevitable that I would become a diabetic.

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In Conclusion

Diabetes is not a death sentence.  I have learned the hard way that if we are pro-active we can control the disease. It can be controlled through diet, exercise and oral medication. However, it is up to us. We diabetics must make an effort to change our life’s habits in order to live a healthy, full life.

Thanks for reading and you can expect many more articles about controlling diabetes.

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Reginald D. Brown

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“Good Health and Success are a Lifestyle . . . Live Well,”
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CK Dillon

Contact: Charles@CreateVitality.Com

On the Web: Http://CreateVitality.Com

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Diabetes and Me: by Kenneth Stokes – Contributing Author

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Saturday 01/09/2010

HI …..For three solid hours that’s all the meter said: HI.

I lay there in the hospital bed, my eyes and ears locked on a heart monitor over my head. It was making noises that sounded like someone was dying.

I followed the route of those colored cables coming out of that monitor making their way back to my chest. Looking at my right hand, there was an IV taped to it, dripping a solution that made my whole arm cold and uncomfortable.

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Then I noticed my wife sitting quietly at the foot of the bed, just staring at me. Any onlooker would have no clue that my beautiful wife was also a medical professional.

She wouldn’t dare say anything that hinted she was fearful of my forthcoming diagnosis, but with what I saw in her eyes . . . she didn’t have to say a word.

Every so often a nurse would come in with another syringe full of  liquid, that she would add to the dripping IV; fifteen minutes later she’d stick my index finger to check my blood sugar level again. After a series of these systematic tasks, the nurse said “Okay, we finally have a number….669.”

I didn’t know exactly what that meant, but any number seemed better than HI.  I glanced at my wife. The look on her face quickly turned my momentary relief into immediate concern. Now all I wanted, and needed to understand was:

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WHAT IS NORMAL ?

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Monday 01/11/2010

Is this really happening? Two days ago I was lying in the emergency room feeling like I was dying; now I’m sitting in my doctor’s office in a follow up appointment.

One of my worst fears has come true, now it’s personal … I have DIABETES !

My mind is racing. Wait a minute; how can I stop this nightmare?  As my mind continued to spin a tremendous amount of thoughts and fears at an unbelievable rate of speed, I didn’t even hear the Doc come into the room.

“Here, Mr. Stokes, take this.”  I focused and she was standing there with this needle in her hand asking me to take it.  What for? I thought.  She said again, “Mr. Stokes take this and I’ll show you how to use it.”

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My immediate, totally disrespectful reaction was, “That is not gonna happen!”

After she professionally presented me with countless pamphlets of information and statistics, she said something that changed my life forever!

“You can control this disease and live a very healthy life if you take charge now and stick to a plan.” She was now speaking my language:

What I realized was my Final Number would NOT be . . . 669! I would:

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TAKE CHARGE AND BE IN CONTROL of DIABETES

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I recognized immediately that the very first demon to be defeated, right then and there, would be False Evidence Appearing Real. FEAR . . . “was the first three days, of the rest of my life.”

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As I face my FEAR I will share more of my story; hopefully it will assist you through a similar situation or maybe even help you avoid it all together. Thanks for reading.

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Kenneth Stokes, Contributing Author

SenGraph@live.com

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Part 2: I’ve got a Million Excuses

My friend’s co-worker, and many like him, will use every excuse in the book to remain inactive which will lead inevitably to him becoming reactive.

Once the disease takes over, it is in control. That’s when most people go into survival mode and come around to doing what is right. Often, too late. Then the friend, family member or co-worker is left wondering how they could have done more, or worse, feeling guilty like it is their fault.

Here are a few statements that I have been told personally when I made suggestions.

• “Butt-out man, this is my problem, I’ll handle it.” A typical “man” comment. We’re always ready to ”fix” something.
• “I don’t believe in taking medicine.”
• “I can’t afford the medicine.”
• “It’s too far to the doctor’s office.”
• “The doctor’s just trying to get all my money.”
• “I hate needles.”
• “Using needles like that will leave tracks and make me look like a junkie.”

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Really, I was told that last one by a person with type 2 diabetes who refused to take insulin.

But with real friends, family and co-workers, they’re in this with us, step for step.

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Everybody cares. “They don’t accept excuses when it comes to our health. They want us around to help them enjoy this wonderful life.”

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Guess what I hear most often though, when I suggest seeing a specialist? And this one, I think, is supposed to shut me up. “I’ve got faith that God is gonna work it out, and send me the answer”

My first thought and comment is always the same. “You’re right, but maybe God sent you me, with my suggestion; the medicine that you won’t take, or the answer that you won’t listen to.”

So to wrap this article up, if there is a disease that we are dealing with personally, let’s not forget those around us who, although not ill, are just as involved.

Let’s honor our friends, family and even co-workers the benefit of listening to their suggestions and not shut them out.

After-all, they’re just saying . . . !!!

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See Part 1 How it Affects Our Loved Ones

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“Good Health and Success are a Lifestyle . . . Live Well,”
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CK Dillon

Contact: Charles@CreateVitality.Com

On the Web: Http://CreateVitality.Com

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African Americans, Baby Boomers and Diabetes

Hey, how’s it going? Thanks for stopping by.

Has a good friend, family member or co-worker shut you out when they became desperately ill?

Today’s article will focus on a different aspect of diabetes, or any disease for that matter that we may contract. The affect on friends, family and loved ones.

When we are stricken with a serious disease it is natural to become inwardly focused, but what we sometimes fail to understand is, our illness, it affects everyone close to us. They are taking it as hard as we are in some cases.

We may crave solitude while trying to figure it out, thinking we are in it alone, but will it be at the expense of those who care for us?

Friends, family members and co-workers who want to help or understand, often don’t know how to deal with what we are going through.

Yeah, I know, sometimes we just want someone to listen and not give advice. But these people who have our back regardless of circumstances, can carry a heavy mental (and possibly physical) load when it comes to our well-being. They are trying to help.

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Case in point. A good friend mentioned to me this morning his concern for his friend and co-worker who has diabetes.

His co-worker’s condition seems to be worsening, but he is either in denial, or is unwilling to be pro-active in battling the disease.

My buddy last week made a good, healthful suggestion. He was just trying to help without being overbearing. He’s like that.

As they perused the menu he said, “Instead of fried chicken, butter soaked mashed potatoes with gravy and a soda for lunch, bro, let’s go get a salad.”

His suggestion was shot down. “Man, that bird-food ‘ain’t gonna fill me up.’”

And therein lies the challenges.

The wrong foods “‘ain’t gonna fill me up” with the right nutrition. “A minute on the lips, a lifetime on the hips, and other places.” “What’s good to you, ain’t necessarily good for you.” “An apple a day keeps the doctor at bay, but a donut a day will supplement his pay.”

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See Part 2: I’ve got a Million Excuses

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“Good Health and Success are a Lifestyle . . . Live Well,”
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CK Dillon

Contact: Charles@CreateVitality.Com

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This is for all the “real men” out there who don’t get check-ups.

How often do we, or someone we know, get a headache, complain about blurred vision or feel like we need a quick pick-me-up? Usually we’ll take an aspirin, apply eye drops, gulp down an energy drink, etc., anything to make us feel better, if only temporarily.

These remedies, for the most part, are effective. But when our home remedies don’t correct the ailment we may need to get another opinion. A professional opinion . . . like, hmmmm, maybe a doctor’s?

That’s where, for many in our community, and I’m guilty of it too, the buck stops. We, especially men, tend to do it later; we’ll get around to it or say, “I know how I feel.” Until one of the women in our lives says something, or puts her foot down, we will do nothing.

Yes, I have used excuses instead of handling my business too . . . until I had a rather serious ailment that I initially tried to treat with cough drops, etc.

After my wife insisted that what I was doing wasn’t working, I had to consult with a doctor. Now I have to say, that method is not good enough. We really need to get a handle on our health and become pro-active.

Today’s article is a brief run-down of symptoms of Diabetes. These symptoms usually develop over a short period of time and may seem minor at first.

Some Symptoms of Type 1 Diabetes

• Constant or Increased hunger, even after a good meal.
• Significant or Unexplained loss of Weight
• Increased thirst
• Frequent or increased urination
• Blurred vision
• Extreme fatigue
• Dry mouth.
• Headaches.
• An additional symptom of Type 1 Diabetes: loss of consciousness; rare but very serious.

Treatment:

People with Type 1 diabetes must take insulin for the remainder of their lives. If a person has type 1 diabetes and is not diagnosed and treated, they can lapse into a coma or worse.

Some Symptoms of Type 2 Diabetes are the same symptoms as Type 1, but also include:

• Feeling ill
• Frequent infections
• Slow-healing wounds
• Frequent yeast infections
• Itchy skin around the vagina and groin area, that is not cured by thrush medication.
• Weight gain.
• Decreased vision
• Impotency.
• Boils (higher blood sugar levels provide food for bacteria)
• Evidence of bruising
• Acanthosis nigricans: Light-brown-to-black, velvety, rough areas, or increased skin markings on the back and sides of the neck, armpits and in the groin.

Treatment:

• Until recently, Type 2 diabetes typically developed in people who were middle aged and could usually be controlled by diet and drugs. In some cases people may have to take insulin as well. Type 2 diabetes is rapidly becoming detectable in children as young as adolescent.

To contact the National Diabetes Education Program (NDEP) for more resources on preventing and/or controlling diabetes:

• Call 1-888-693-6337
• Website: Http://YourDiabetesInfo.org.

Information for this article was researched an adapted from information including but not limited to the following:

• National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.
• National Diabetes Statistics, 2007. Bethesda, MD:
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services,
• National Institutes of Health 2008: http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/statistics/

Hope this article helps in some way. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms on a regular basis, quit “being a man” and get yourself checked out.

If you liked this article, share it with a friend. Join CreateVitality.Com’s Better Health for Boomers Free Newsletter by filling in the Sign Up form on the upper right panel of this page.

Click here To read Segment 1

Click here To read Segment 2

Thanks for reading.

“Good Health and Success are a Lifestyle . . . Let’s Choose to Live Well,”

CK Dillon

Contact: Charles@CreateVitality.Com

On the Web: Http://CreateVitality.Com

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What is Diabetes, or . . . “The Sugar?”

• Diabetes, a leading cause of death and disability in the United States, is a group of diseases that won’t allow our bodies to properly convert food into energy.

• This conversion process, that our bodies won’t allow, is known as metabolism.

• One sugar energy source, blood glucose, is produced during metabolism.

• The level of blood glucose (sugar) in our blood is regulated by Insulin, a hormone produced in the pancreas.

Diabetes is distinguished by high levels of blood glucose (sugar) in our system, resulting from our body’s defective insulin production, action, or both.

Types of Diabetes

• Type 1 Diabetes; formerly Juvenile Onset Diabetes, accounts for 5-10% of all diagnosed cases of diabetes and results when the body’s immune system attacks and destroys its insulin-producing cells in the pancreas.

• Type 2 Diabetes; formerly Adult-Onset Diabetes accounts for 90-95% of all diagnosed cases of diabetes and occurs when the body does not make enough insulin or cannot effectively use the insulin it makes.

In the not-too-distant past, Type 2 Diabetes was normally discovered in adults over 40 years of age. Lately it has become prevalent in younger generations, including adolescents.

• Gestational Diabetes; occurs in women only during pregnancy

The cause of each type of diabetes is different, but the common thread is high levels of glucose (sugar) in the blood.

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See Segment #1: Diabetes in the African American Community

See Segment #3: Some Symptoms of Diabetes

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Thanks for reading. If you liked this article, share it with a friend.

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“Good Health and Success are a Lifestyle . . . Let’s Choose to Live Well,”

CK Dillon,

Contact: Charles@CreateVitality.Com

On the Web: Http://CreateVitality.Com

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One Saturday morning back in ‘64, I was sitting in our community’s”pinnacle of opinion”, Red’s Barbershop, waiting for my turn in the chair.

There was a heated discussion going on between several of the Saturday morning regulars and as usual, I learned something.

After a considerable amount of friendly bickering, finger-pointing and debate over his symptoms, John, who was sitting in the barber’s chair at the time, finally agreed with the others.

He said something like, “I guess for all intents and purposes, I’ve ‘caught’ the Sugar.”

By that time, I’d heard of a few people who had “caught” the disease, but I’d never been told what it actually meant to have the ‘Sugar.’

What I did know was if someone actually caught the “Sugar,” it was serious. Up until that day, when people spoke of it around me, it was with a hushed voice.

Looking back I don’t think many people in my community knew exactly what it was, or how to combat it, they just knew it was not a good thing to have.

I have learned of parents who had diabetes back then, but hid the fact from their children. Later in life one or more of their children contracted, or most likely inherited, the disease.

One thing I remember about the barbershop conversation was when Jeremiah, who was  in his late seventies, asked, “I got just one question. So what’s that mean, I’m Black, so I’m probably gonna catch the ‘Sugar’ too?.”

His observation was met with a loud chorus of, “Hell Yes!,” followed by more bickering, finger-pointing, debate and laughter. Barbershop conversations always seemed to end like that, with laughter.

Well, it’s over fifty years later and to paraphrase the gentleman’s question, “Is it ’cause I’m Black?” The answer to that hit closer to home than he would have ever imagined.

I’ll explain my theory, but first we need to determine exactly what we are dealing with as a community in the next segment.

Segment #2: What is Diabetes or ‘The Sugar’?

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Thanks for reading.

“Good Health and Success are a Lifestyle . . . Let’s Choose to Live Well,”

CK Dillon

Contact: Charles@CreateVitality.Com

On the Web: Http://CreateVitality.Com

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