Dear Abby
Jeanne Phillips
Tips that’ll do your heart good
Published February 26, 2003
Dear Abby: February is devoted to “matters of the heart.” As president of the
American Diabetes Association, I offer this message to your readers and to the
17 million Americans with diabetes: The “heart matters” when treating diabetes
— much more than people realize.
Two out of three people with diabetes will die from heart attack or stroke
unless they manage their blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol. The
following are the ABCs of diabetes:
A: ALC, the test that measures average blood sugar over the past three months,
should be less than seven, and checked at least twice a year.
B: Blood pressure should be below 130/80 and measured at every visit with your
doctor.
C: Cholesterol (LDL or “bad”) should be below 100 and checked once a year.
It’s imperative that people with diabetes work closely with their health-care
provider to determine what steps they can take to reach their ABC goals.
The American Diabetes Association and the American College of Cardiology have
launched an assault on diabetes and cardiovascular disease through an initiative
called “Make the Link! Diabetes, Heart Disease and Stroke.” Abby, please
encourage your readers to learn more about this effort by calling 800-342-2383
or visiting our Web site: www.diabetes.org/makethelink.
— Francine Kaufman, M.D.
Dear Dr. Kaufman: Thank you for an important letter. Out of the 17 million
Americans with diabetes, almost 6 million don’t know they have it. That’s
because diabetes develops gradually, often without obvious signs or symptoms.
The most common symptoms of Type 1 diabetes are frequent urination, unusual
thirst, extreme hunger, unusual weight loss, extreme fatigue and irritability.
Type 2 diabetes symptoms are the same as Type 1, plus frequent infections,
blurred vision, cuts/bruises that are slow to heal, tingling/numbness in the
hands or feet, and recurring skin, gum or bladder infections.
The Web site www.diabetes.org/risktest offers a quick and easy test to see if
you are at risk.