A very informative video on how to appropriately and safely exercise while on insulin. This is a very important video, because it talks about one of they many thing few people comprehend about diabetes. Also, after watching, you will understand how important it is to test your blood sugar all the time.

Jim Turner asks the question: What People Know & Don’t Know About Diabetes??

Well, I had a loooong overdue eye exam about a week ago. I also really needed a new pair of glasses, so I wanted to kill two birds with one stone. We all should try our best to get our eye exam at least once a year. This time around, I decided to go to a local LensCrafters in my area.  I must say that, I am extremely impressed with the unmatched level of customer service, expertise & professionalism. Each and every single employee @ the location I was in, was  absolutely awesome!! From the sales staff, to the techs/doctor really did a wonderful job. I am really pleased with both my check-up experience, the follow-up, and my new glasses.  I will most definitely do business with them again!

Thanks to my good blood sugar control, my eyes are still healthy 5 years after my surgeries. For the exam, they used very hi-tech equipment I’ve never seen before. One device used, tested my peripheral vision (I think) using tiny lights. Each time I saw a light flash, I had to click a button on a hand-held controller. It seemed more like a fun video game after a while . Their computers are so sophisticated that,  it even -re-calculated my correct vision, despite my implants! In other words, it compensated for the 90-95% of vision I am getting already from the implant automatically.

 Nice…………

They also used a machine to scan a 3 dimensional image of the back of my eyes. The scan generated a hi-resolution scan that was detailed enough, to clearly show my blood vessels behind my eyes. The scan showed no sign of broken/bleeding blood vessels, or retina detachment. My eye pressure is in normal range .

When getting eyes checked, diabetics need to see an Optometrist or Ophthalmologist.  Even with all the cool technologies I’ve experienced, we still need to have our eyes dilated, so that the doctor can see our eyes up close! It is the best way for the doctor to spot any potential problems in the future.

A few key points:

• Poor eye pressure (prolonged) is one of the many high risk factors for glaucoma. Glaucoma is a group of several diseases that gradually, and irreversibly, cause the loss of sight. Permanently. There is no cure for Glaucoma. It is possible to stop the progression via medication, early detection, and controlling your blood sugars!! There are no symptoms for glaucoma, so it is important to check your eyes yearly. Click on the glaucoma simulator, to see what it looks like.

•  Retinal detachment often occurs, when you have high levels of blood sugar (for long periods of time), that eventually cause the blood vessels to burst/break, and leak blood, causing the retina to detach from the eye. This causes permanent loss of sight. There is no cure, or correction for retina detachment. However, you can try and prevent the further progression of  detachment via early detection & laser surgery. Talk to your Ophthalmologist for more information. Click on the retinal detachment simulator, to see what it looks like.

• Cataracts are mostly caused by consistent high levels of fluid & protein in the eyes. These high levels of fluid in the eyes are often caused by frequent high blood sugars. Before I got cataracts, I always assumed that cataracts was ONLY the result, of the natural aging process. I since learned that any one, at any age can develop cataracts; it is even possible for infants to be born with cataracts. In short, If the fluid in our eyes are not controlled (by maintaining good blood sugar), all the fluids along with the protein stains our natural lens. When our natural lens becomes stained with protein, our vision gradually turns white. There is a misconception that cataracts are corrected with a laser procedure, this is false (at least at this moment and time). The only way to correct cataracts, is to surgically remove the cataract/natural lens, and replace it with an implant. There is no “cure” for cataracts. The only time laser is used in terms of cataracts, is when a small membrane sometimes develops a few years after the surgery. This membrane sometimes causes a slight fuzziness in vision. If this happens, the surgeon will make a small a tiny whole near the implant (using laser technology), so that the membrane can drain. Once this procedure is done, you should not have any further problems (so long as your blood sugar is under control). Talk to your doctor for more information. If you would like to see a cataract simulation, click here.. Just a side note, my cataracts was much worse than the actual simulation. I eventually became color blind, and lost my dept perception and peripheral vision. I say this not to scare my readers, but to impress the importance of NOT TO PROCRASTINATE. You absolutely can not pray cataracts away. My cataracts would have NEVER gotten as bad as it did, had I had the right team of doctors, and the right hospitals from the get go. I don’t know how to make it any clearer……. TAKE CARE OF YOUR BLOOD SUGARS!!! If I can do it, I know you guys can do it.

One last point I would like to make, it does make a difference where you go to get your glasses and check up. The last place I’ve gone to, set my bifocals so far down the lenses, that it was a strain to read. I often had to wear two different glasses because of it. However, LensCrafters has done such a great job, my reading feels much more comfortable now. I really do appreciate both their patience & the time they’ve all taken to help me. It’s not often you find employees that would go out of their way to help a customer.

When is YOUR next eye appointment?

© 2011 DiabeticRadio.com

My X-Ray

I thought that maybe it would be a good idea, to once again, go over the importance of all diabetics taking good care of our feet.

Last week I accidentally injured my foot, by stepping on a piece of broken glass (unnoticed), just after getting out the shower. The broken glass came from a picture frame that fell about a week prior. I pulled out the one piece (so I thought) that caused my injury. However, I still felt pain a few minutes after I tried to walk. Obviously, I knew that there was a more than likely chance, that some glass I could not see remained in my foot. Once I realize that their might be still a problem, I found a podiatrist as quickly as  I could.

Long story short, the doctor pulled out about 3 additional, very tiny, and very thin pieces of that same broken glass. The doctor also was kind enough to give me a copy of my X-Rays shown above. He explained to me that today, many manufactures produce glass with only 1 layer, instead of 2. The problem with this is that, because the particular class I injured myself with only had one layer, it did not show up on any of my X-Rays. So, fortunately for me, the tiny pieces of glass was close enough to my foot’s surfice/skin, that he could manually get them all out.

The good part of this whole experience is that, because my sugars are in good control, my foot is healing well (slow, but well). Also, the injection the doctor used to numb my foot, hurt sooooo much like a #@%$#^%$, that I know I don’t have any signs of neuropathy . Taking care of our blood sugars is such a key part to hour diabetic health.  Had I ignored my injury, and ignored my blood sugars, this could have turned in to a very nasty infection.

So what’s the moral of the story? No matter how well we think we are careful, sometimes s**t still happens anyway, and it is always good to have a game plan in place, and not procrastinate, or assume anything. Below are some tips:

• Have your doctor check your feet at least twice a year or more.
• If you cannot bend to inspect your foot, ask a friend or family member to help you.
• Large and uncontrolled callus, as well as excessively long toe nails can also cause yourself possible injury.
• It’s a good idea to let your foot doctor shave your callus (if any), instead of your pedicurist. Your doctor can often see things your pedicurist will not.
• Calluses that are thicker and larger than normal, or ofter callus that forms a crater in the middle of itself, could indicate an old injury, and you may still have a foreign object under that callus. You must see a doctor at this point (just to verify).
• Keeping your feet well moisturized, can help reduce the a mount of callus.
• Epsom salt is a great and cheap alternative to relaxing your feet muscles. Ask your doctor if Epsom salt is right for you.
• Always were soft and comfortable shoes and sneakers whenever possible.
• Purchase footwear that have good arch support.
• Be extremely careful wearing open-toe slippers out in the street & subways. Your toes are now exposed with  no protection.
• Keep toe nails to a reasonable length.
• It is safer to allow a doctor to work with ingrown toe nails. If not treated correctly can result in infection.
• Keep in mind that, our feet are the one part of our bodies that get the most abused. pamper your feet whenever possible.

As with any doctor, you should always ask your podiatrist any questions you need answered, no matter how embarrassing it may seem. Your feet is one of the most important parts of our bodies, especially to a diabetic.

© 2011 DiabeticRadio.com