As obesity rises in our country, so does diabetes, especially Type II, the kind many overweight adults come down with. In extremely obese individuals, one of the major dangers from diabetes is the foot ulceration, which occurs in about 15% of people with diabetes. Podiatry Management, (www.podiatrym.com), a journal for foot doctors, devoted its November/December issue to
“the diabetic foot.”
They quote a number of interesting statistics: in the last ten years, obesity incidence has increased by 60% in adults; in 1985 ten states had less than 10% obesity prevalence and none had one over 15%. Today, about 30% of US adults are obese and about 70% are overweight or obese. The journal explained that in 2012 $471 billion was spend on diabetes-related healthcare worldwide. Yes, obesity isn’t strictly an American epidemic. In the US, diabetes affects nearly 26 million or about eight percent of the population. However, as obesity rises, so will diabetes.
One article emphasized that the five-year mortality rate associated with a foot ulcer is 45%. Compare that to the five-year mortality rate of breast cancer patients, which is 18%. Not pleasant.
Some of the articles showed photos of foot ulcers, which, of course, you can see instantly by searching for them on a Google image search. They’re not pretty. And, according to a friend of mine who practices podiatry, diabetic patients with foot problems come in every day. And most are obese. According to him,
“Everybody wants to play but nobody wants to pay.”
The LifeNuts lifestyle seems difficult for the average person to adopt but actually it’s much easier than it appears. And, if you know a friend or relative with a weight problem, why not suggest this new lifestyle? It might prevent him or her from succumbing to diabetes and, in a worse case scenario, losing a foot!
Last week I had lunch with an old friend (in his 50s) whose BMI was probably in the low 30s, just beyond the obesity threshold. He complained that he was recently diagnosed with diabetes and had to limit his food choices along with changing some other unhealthy habits. So I spent most of the lunch time talking about choices, the LifeNuts lifestyle, and the books of Dr. Neal Barnard, especially his book on reversing diabetes through diet. I hope my friend listened and makes some changes in his life. If not, his future will not be fun. “Everybody wants to play … "
“the diabetic foot.”
They quote a number of interesting statistics: in the last ten years, obesity incidence has increased by 60% in adults; in 1985 ten states had less than 10% obesity prevalence and none had one over 15%. Today, about 30% of US adults are obese and about 70% are overweight or obese. The journal explained that in 2012 $471 billion was spend on diabetes-related healthcare worldwide. Yes, obesity isn’t strictly an American epidemic. In the US, diabetes affects nearly 26 million or about eight percent of the population. However, as obesity rises, so will diabetes.
One article emphasized that the five-year mortality rate associated with a foot ulcer is 45%. Compare that to the five-year mortality rate of breast cancer patients, which is 18%. Not pleasant.
Some of the articles showed photos of foot ulcers, which, of course, you can see instantly by searching for them on a Google image search. They’re not pretty. And, according to a friend of mine who practices podiatry, diabetic patients with foot problems come in every day. And most are obese. According to him,
“Everybody wants to play but nobody wants to pay.”
The LifeNuts lifestyle seems difficult for the average person to adopt but actually it’s much easier than it appears. And, if you know a friend or relative with a weight problem, why not suggest this new lifestyle? It might prevent him or her from succumbing to diabetes and, in a worse case scenario, losing a foot!
Last week I had lunch with an old friend (in his 50s) whose BMI was probably in the low 30s, just beyond the obesity threshold. He complained that he was recently diagnosed with diabetes and had to limit his food choices along with changing some other unhealthy habits. So I spent most of the lunch time talking about choices, the LifeNuts lifestyle, and the books of Dr. Neal Barnard, especially his book on reversing diabetes through diet. I hope my friend listened and makes some changes in his life. If not, his future will not be fun. “Everybody wants to play … "
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