Diabetic Supplies
Diabetic Supplies for Diabetes Control . . . Welcome to our Knowledge is Power Resource Guide, providing free information to get you on the road to better health today with diabetes health and wellness information from Diabetic Supplies Organization, a good online source for diabetes care, diabetic services and diabetes products!
Diabetes may be Reversed with Regular Exercise and Weight-Loss...
Diabetes education is a crucial part of a diabetic treatment plan. Diabetes education focuses on ways to incorporate diabetes disease management principles into the individual's daily life and minimize dependence on the diabetes health care provider.
Diabetes educators have identified three levels of diabetes education:
- basic disease management including basic "survival skills"
- home management
- improvement of lifestyle
Basic disease management includes knowledge and skills that a person newly diagnosed with diabetes must master prior to leaving the hospital or health care provider's office. Diabetic skills include:
- learning how to recognize and treat low blood sugar (hypoglycemia)
- learning how to recognize and treat high blood sugar (hyperglycemia)
- learning how to select appropriate foods and when to eat them
- learning how to administer insulin or how to take oral diabetic drugs
- learning how to test and record blood glucose and urine ketones
- learning where to buy diabetic supplies and dugs and how to store them
Home management skills will help the diabetic to better control their disease and may prevent development of complications.
Home health care monitoring using a diabetic testing kit and disease management skills include:
- learning how to adjust insulin and/or food intake during exercise
- learning how to handle sick days
- diabetic foot care
- learning to watch for long-term complications of diabetes and managing commonly associated conditions such as high blood pressure
After the person with diabetes learns the basic principles of diabetes care and a diabetics routine has been established for several months, he or she may be interested in learning more about the disease. Information about ways to improve the lifestyle of people with diabetes may be helpful. Topics may include:
- how to handle eating out
- alcohol use and diabetes
- how to modify insulin levels based on blood glucose levels
- how to adjust insulin and diet for variations in meal times, and changes in routine.
An annual review of diabetes information is strongly recommended. Continually updating personal knowledge of diabetes is advised, because new research and improved ways to treat the disease are constantly being developed.
A diabetes nurse-educator can serve as an excellent resource for information on diabetes. These diabetes educators should carry the title "Certified Diabetes Educator" (CDE) indicating that they have received board certification. Often, the diabetes educator can help you develop a diabetics management plan based on your age, work or school schedule, activity levels, and usual eating patterns. Click-here for Health Tip-of-the-Day.
Some medical centers provide specific Diabetes Clinics that specialize in management of patients with diabetes. These clinics often combine the resources of several experts in diabetes management, including a physician who specializes in the care of people with diabetes, a diabetes nurse practitioner, a certified diabetes educator, a registered dietitian, and a social worker. These medical clinics also are a good source of diabetes information for the diabetic patient.
The American Diabetes Association (ADA) and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation offer several pamphlets and brochures about diabetes. For information on educational programs and/or seminars, contact your local chapter of the American Diabetes Association (ADA), American Dietetic Association, American Association of Diabetes Educators, your local health department, the hospitals and ERs or emergency medical centers at your location.