Glucose-level test helps diabetics to live without limits
Glucose-level test helps diabetics to live without limits
Emmy Fitri, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Suffering from diabetes does not have to mean the end of the
world. These days, diabetics can live without having any limits,
just like other healthy people. They only need to exercise self-
discipline and regularly check their glucose levels.
In the past, doctors were quick to prescribe a strict and
conservative diet for diabetics. These diets would make one feel
that the world was tasteless and their life was unhip. Diabetics
could not consume coffee, tea, ice cream, candies or durian, not
to mention other tempting treats.
"Many people have asked me about tips for diabetics. All I can
say is that diabetics can eat anything they want as long as it is
controlled and in moderation," said Sidartawan Soegondo, an
endocrinologist and diabetes consultant.
Diabetes is a hormone disorder that is closely related to
lifestyles and self-control. Apart from diabetes striking a
person early in life, diabetes can develop in people with an
unhealthy lifestyle, which includes consuming too much junk food
or not getting enough exercise. Both factors jack up one's
glucose level.
Nongenetic diabetes usually occurs in people over the age of
40. But younger obese people are also suffering from diabetes and
this trend is increasing due to their unhealthy lifestyles.
According to Australia's International Diabetes Institute,
more than 180 million people worldwide have been diagnosed with
diabetes. In Asia, more than 84 million people are diabetics, and
that number is believed to double in the next two decades.
In Indonesia in 2000, there were 5.6 million diabetics.
What's worse is that there are only 40 doctors specializing in
endocrinology and diabetes in this country.
"There's a ratio imbalance of one doctor serving 140,000
patients here. Therefore, I always support the idea that
diabetics are subjects of the disease and they actually can
control their condition," Sidartawan said.
What diabetics should keep in mind is that they carefully
control their glucose level to avoid further complications.
Diabetes can cause further problems to their kidneys, legs and
feet, eyes, heart, nerves and blood flow. If left untreated,
these problems can lead to kidney failure, gangrene and
amputation, blindness or stroke.
Although this is not their first product, LifeScan, a company
under Johnson & Johnson, is introducing OneTouch Ultra, a self-
monitoring glucose level system to help diabetics broaden their
horizons and enjoy life without having any limits to it, just as
healthy people can.
"We want to change the paradigm of diabetics so that they too
can enjoy their lives. Of course, they must control their own
glucose level," the director of PT Johnson & Johnson Indonesia,
Ratrelis V. Canny, told a media gathering on Monday.
Meanwhile, LifeScan marketing and director for ASEAN and
Pakistan Corine Ooi Bremer said glucose monitors would help
diabetics control their lives.
"They can regularly check their glucose level. People don't
have to go to a laboratory and wait for hours to know their
glucose level," she said.
The glucose monitor, which can fit into an adult's palm, can
be used to complement one's diet or clinical treatment. Its
superiority lies in the fact that it is light, compact and quick,
taking only five seconds to give the results.
"OneTouch Ultra only needs one microliter of a blood sample to
be put in the capillary tip. In five seconds, the result will
appear," Bremer said.
The glucose monitor is sold in Indonesia for Rp 1.125 million
(US$102.00) and is available at leading drugstores.
Type 1 Diabetes
Type 1 diabetes -- also known as insulin-dependent or immune-
mediated diabetes -- is a disease that destroys the cells in the
pancreas that produce the hormone insulin.
The symptoms are: High levels of sugar in the blood, high
levels of sugar in the urine, frequent urination (and/or
bed-wetting in children), extreme hunger, extreme thirst,
extreme weight loss, weakness and tiredness, irritability and
mood swings, nausea and vomiting
Type 2 Diabetes
Type 2 diabetes or non-insulin dependent diabetes is the most
common form of the disease. It usually occurs in people who are
over 40 years old and overweight.
What are the symptoms?
Type 2 diabetes often develops slowly. Most people who get it
have increased thirst and an increased need to urinate.
Many also feel tired, irritable and nauseous. Some people have an
increase in appetite, but they lose weight.
Other signs are: Repeated or hard-to-heal infections of the skin,
gums, vagina, or bladder; blurred vision; tingling or loss of feeling
in the hands or feet; dry and itchy skin.
The symptoms can be so mild that they go unnoticed. They may
also be confused with signs of aging. It is thought that millions
of people worldwide suffer from type 2 diabetes without even
realizing it.