By Chris Saudek, M.D. Not long ago, I wrote an op-ed piece that appeared in the Baltimore Sun about diabetes and our new Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor. I noted that less than 100 years ago, an 8-year-old child with type 1 diabetes wouldn't have lived to see her 10th birthday. Today, 43 years after contracting diabetes, Judge Sotomayor is going strong and expected to contribute for decades to come.
I am new to blogging but I have been immersed in the world of diabetes research, education, and treatment for quite a while, and I have seen our ability to care for diabetes improve almost unbelievably.
The discovery of insulin in 1921 was of course no cure, but almost overnight it changed type 1 diabetes into a manageable chronic disease. To be sure, it can still cause tragic complications, and remains the U.S.'s leading cause of kidney failure, amputations, and loss of vision. But complications are no longer inevitable and diabetes can be managed--it does not have to turn out badly.
Patients can now monitor their own blood-glucose and follow regular hemoglobin A1c levels. They can take advantage of new pills, new insulins, insulin pumps, good eye care, and even continuous blood-sugar monitoring.
Perhaps most exciting of all, there is progress toward a cure, which I recently summarized in a commentary in the April 15 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
But curing diabetes will still take a lot of research. In the meantime, the key is to manage your diabetes well, to take advantage of all that is available today. As I write these blogs, I hope to help you do just that. I want to interpret the research studies you may read about, discuss good self-care, and help you achieve a good long-term outcome with diabetes
Justice Sotomayor joins a long list of inspiring people who have excelled in every imaginable profession despite having diabetes. Whether it's NFL quarterback Jay Cutler, blues master B.B. King, film star Halle Berry, or any number of others, there are countless role models who have had diabetes.
It's not an easy disease to live with, but it can certainly be done, and I will help you learn how.
I am new to blogging but I have been immersed in the world of diabetes research, education, and treatment for quite a while, and I have seen our ability to care for diabetes improve almost unbelievably.
The discovery of insulin in 1921 was of course no cure, but almost overnight it changed type 1 diabetes into a manageable chronic disease. To be sure, it can still cause tragic complications, and remains the U.S.'s leading cause of kidney failure, amputations, and loss of vision. But complications are no longer inevitable and diabetes can be managed--it does not have to turn out badly.
Patients can now monitor their own blood-glucose and follow regular hemoglobin A1c levels. They can take advantage of new pills, new insulins, insulin pumps, good eye care, and even continuous blood-sugar monitoring.
Perhaps most exciting of all, there is progress toward a cure, which I recently summarized in a commentary in the April 15 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).
But curing diabetes will still take a lot of research. In the meantime, the key is to manage your diabetes well, to take advantage of all that is available today. As I write these blogs, I hope to help you do just that. I want to interpret the research studies you may read about, discuss good self-care, and help you achieve a good long-term outcome with diabetes
Justice Sotomayor joins a long list of inspiring people who have excelled in every imaginable profession despite having diabetes. Whether it's NFL quarterback Jay Cutler, blues master B.B. King, film star Halle Berry, or any number of others, there are countless role models who have had diabetes.
It's not an easy disease to live with, but it can certainly be done, and I will help you learn how.
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