Diabetes’ Youth Ambassador Spreads His Message to Detroit

One look at Christian Stokes, 18 and he looks like any excited and energetic freshman heading off to college for the first time. But talk to this Minnesota native, and you quickly learn that his life has been anything but a cakewalk to the Halls of Ivy.  Diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when he was just 15 months old, Christian has never experienced a day without syringes, insulin and blood-glucose meters.

But the daily requirements that accompany this disease did not deter Christian from the desire to live a life like any normal child. So rather than wallow in his condition, he chose to live a life just like his peers and thus began playing sports in school. But unlike them, playing Christian’s favorite sports like wrestling and football required that he had to constantly check his blood-sugar levels, administer insulin when necessary and ensure that during and after his workouts, he was properly nourished. If he didn’t keep close tabs on his health, he risked serious consequences. It is this real threat of severe hypoglycemia and other diabetic complications that deters many diabetic kids from engaging in sports. But not Christian.

During his teenaged years, he was very active in the local chapters of the American Diabetes Association (ADA), educating kids and parents about the disease and encouraging his peers to be active, eat well and stay healthy, in addition to being a devoted athlete. Just this past January, Christian was awarded the prestigious nomination by the ADA as the organization’s National Youth Advocate (NYA), a title coveted by many but given to just one.

As part of his year-long post, Christian has been traveling all over the country speaking to millions of Americans about diabetes in addition to urging government officials on the need for increased federal funds to support diabetes research.

According to the ADA, nearly 24 million adults and children in the U.S. – including more than 927,000 Michigan adults – have been diagnosed with diabetes, and another 57 million have pre-diabetes. Both Type I and Type II diabetes are characterized by too much sugar in the blood, which over time can lead to heart disease, stroke, nerve damage and amputations, blindness and kidney disease. Type I diabetes develops when the body’s immune system destroys pancreatic cells that make the hormone insulin that regulates blood sugar. Type II diabetes, which in the past been a disease of overweight or obese middle-aged adults, has been striking U.S. children and adolescents with increasing frequency. Children who develop Type II diabetes are typically overweight or obese according to the Centers for Disease Control.

“I want to encourage all youth to become aware of how their actions and behaviors impact their health,” says Stokes. “It doesn’t matter if you have Type I or Type II diabetes, I want to encourage everyone to get out there and exercise. Even though it may be challenging, the rewards are great.”

And that is just what he is going to do in Detroit. In order to raise awareness among Michigan residents, Christian will speak at the American Diabetes Association’s 2009 Detroit Diabetes EXPO presented by Walmart on September 19 at the Michigan State Fairgrounds.

The Detroit Diabetes EXPO will feature: how-to product demonstrations; free health screenings; healthy cooking and exercise demonstrations; exciting workshops; an interactive Youth Zone for kids of all ages; a Senior Zone and a variety of guest speakers from the medical community, who will cover topics relevant to those with diabetes.

To avoid serious complications and related health issues, people with diabetes can take advantage of information and services like those provided at EXPO to lower the risk.  As early diagnosis and treatment of diabetes is critical, access to important resources could mean the difference between struggling with diabetes and successfully managing the disease.

The event and parking at the State Fairgrounds is free and open to the public and will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

For more information on diabetes or the event, please visit www.diabetes.org/EXPO or call toll free at 1-800-DIABETES (1-888-342-2383).

You can read more about Christian on his blog at .

Diabetes: Michigan’s Epidemic

With Hamdee Attallah, MD & Mary Riegle

The word epidemic is often thrown around to put fear in people’s heart. Oftentimes, we become immune to the term because it is used so often. However, for those in the healthcare industry, one disease is becoming an epidemic: Diabetes.

According to Mary Riegle of Michigan’s chapter of the American Diabetes Association, over 593,000 people in the Great Lakes State have been diagnosed with diabetes. Another 292,000 more have the disease, but have not yet been diagnosed. In fact, Riegle states that many people have had diabetes for 10 years prior to their first diagnosis.

According to the ADA, diabetes was the sixth leading cause of death in Michigan in 2004. It’s direct costs totaled $4.5 million dollars, with indirect costs due to lost work, mortality, restricted work days and disability totaled $2 billion.

So, why is Type II diabetes reaching epidemic proportions? The simple answer is lifestyle, says Dr. Hamdee Attallah, assistant professor of medicine at Wayne State University School of Medicine Endocrinology. Genetics aside, Dr. Attallah says the growing rate of diabetes among adults is directly related to poor lifestyle habits.

“The percentage of adults who are overweight or obese in the United States is over 60%, and unfortunately, that has not spared our population,” says Dr. Attallah. “As a result, the prevalence of diabetes in Michigan, and throughout the U.S., is increasing.”

Locally, Dr. Attallah says the diverse population in Michigan accounts for one of the reasons we are seeing high rates of the disease. “The urban, inner city population is primarily, but not exclusively, presenting with diabetes in a disproportionate amount compared to Caucasians,” says Dr. Attallah. “African Americans, Hispanics, Arab Americans and other ethnic groups have much higher prevalence rates.”

Dr. Attallah accounts the differences to a combination of factors including lifestyle, education, access to healthcare and finances. “It’s such an incredibly expensive disease. We need to figure out a way to treat it in a most cost-effective way, and find a way to prevent it. If we can prevent it, we won’t have to spend the money to treat it.”

Since everyone does not have access to healthcare, Dr. Attallah emphasizes that people should control the controllables. He recommends practicing good dietary habits, exercise programs, or increasing your activity level.

“Lifestyle changes can help prevent diabetes; particularly in people who are at high risk,” says Dr. Attallah. “Those in the ‘pre-diabetic state’ – where the glucose levels are elevated but not at diabetic levels – are the people we need to identify early and target them for prevention with both diet and exercise.”

There is no current medication to prevent diabetes, states Dr. Attallah. Medicinal therapies are only designed to treat the disease, not prevent it. The only standard recommended by the American Diabetes Association for preventing diabetes is diet, exercise and weight loss, he says. Simply stated: “There is no magic pill.”

The recently published Diabetes Prevention Study had pre-diabetic subjects who simply modified their lifestyle in the study. The results revealed that those subjects who had modest weight loss of 5-10 pounds reduced their risk of diabetes by 60% compared to those who did not diet and exercise, says Dr. Attallah.

Exercise can be as simple as a minimum of 35-40 minutes of brisk walking a day, 3-4 times per week, says Dr. Attallah. As one’s tolerability increases, so should the amount of exercise over time.

By controlling diabetes, patients can avoid a myriad of other complications such as cardiovascular disease, stroke, diabetic neuropathy, amputeeism. “I would refer to diabetes as a ‘syndrome’. It’s a myriad of different medical problems associated with the hyperglycemia of diabetes. It’s a syndrome of illnesses,” says Dr. Attallah.

With childhood obesity on the rise, Dr. Attallah and many physicians expect to only see Type II diabetes diagnosis to continue to rise. His hope is that people do the right things for themselves to help prevent this disease, and live a healthier, better life.

Dr. Attallah is an Assistant Professor of Medicine, Wayne State University School of Medicine Endocrinology, and on staff at DMC Harper University Hospital.

Mary Reigle is the Director of Special Events for the American Diabetes Association of Southeast Michigan and Northwest Ohio located in Bingham Farms, Michigan.