November is American Diabetes Month

This November, during American Diabetes Month, the Pen Bay Healthcare Diabetes & Nutrition Care Center and American Diabetes Association are asking "Why should you care about diabetes?"

Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney disease, blindness and amputation. Two out of three people with diabetes die from heart disease and stroke. The total national healthcare cost in the United States is estimated at $175 billion dollars.

Chances are, you or someone you love has been affected by diabetes in some way. But even if you haven't been affected by diabetes, you need to know that diabetes is the biggest public health crisis of the 21st century, and it continues to grow to epidemic proportions. Nearly 26 million children and adults in the United States have diabetes. Another 79 million Americans have pre-diabetes and are at risk for developing diabetes. By 2050, at this rate, 1 in 3 American adults will develop diabetes unless we take steps to Stop Diabetes.

Remembering the "ABCs of diabetes" can help to prevent or delay the onset of these serious diabetes complications:

• Average glucose. Most people with diabetes should get an estimated average glucose (eAG) or a hemoglobin A1 test every six months, which measures how well they are managing their diabetes over time. It is important to keep their eAG less than 154 mg/dl or A1C less than 7 percent.
• Blood pressure. People with diabetes should have a target blood pressure of less than 130/80.
• Cholesterol. LDL (bad) cholesterol should be below 100 mg/dl; HDL (healthy) cholesterol should be above 40 mg/dl for men and 50 mg/dl for women; triglycerides should be below 150 mg/dl.

For more information, call the Pen Bay Healthcare Diabetes & Nutrition Care Center at 701-3999 or visit pbmc.org/diabetes. For more information about American Diabetes Month, visit the American Diabetes Association at stopdiabetes.org.