Page 23 - Florida Sentinel 9-11-15 Edition

Health
3 Common Diabetes Medication Mistakes
Although there’s no magic formula to living well with di- abetes, the secret seems to be developing healthy eating habits, exercising regularly, taking the proper medications and communicating with your doctor. Do these 4 things and to keep your diabetes under control.
1. Forgetting doses - This happens to almost everyone, especially these days when multitasking is encouraged and everyone is being pulled in what seems to be a million di- rections.
To keep better track of what medications to take and when to take them, set a reminder on your smartphone or post a note on your dresser or refrig- erator door . Communication with your doctor is key if you accidentally skip a dose.
2. Quitting medications after experiencing nega- tive side effects - No one wants to deal with nausea or vomiting after taking medica-
tion. However, if you do expe- rience any of these not-so- pleasant side effects, it’s not a cue to stop taking your med- ication.
Inform your doctor right away so your dosage can be adjusted or changed.
3. Not realizing when you’ve become immune to your medication - If you start to notice that your med- ication isn’t as effective as it once was, schedule an ap- pointment with your doctor to determine whether it’s time to add and/or switch medication or increase the dosage.
Diabetes And Peripheral Artery Disease
When you have diabetes, one of the biggest worries you will have is keeping your feet and legs – the very two things you use to get around – healthy. African Americans with diabetes are much more likely to have to undergo a limb amputation. This prob- lem is brought on by diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN), a nerve condition that causes prickling pain or loss of sensa- tion in your feet and legs. And just to give you a sense of how common DPN is, 60 percent of diabetics are expected to de- velop the condition at some point in their lives.
A person with DPN wouldn’t be able to tell if their shower or bath water was too hot or if they had an object stuck in their shoe the entire day, making them more prone to injuries. Along with DPN, diabetes is one of the factors that increases your risk of pe- ripheral artery disease (PAD), a narrowing of the peripheral arteries to the legs, stomach, arms, and head – most com- monly in the arteries of the legs. According to the Ameri- can Heart Association, PAD is similar to coronary artery dis- ease (CAD).
Other PAD risk factors are:
• If you smoke, you have an especially high risk for PAD.
• People with high blood pressure or high cholesterol are at risk for PAD.
• Your risk increases with age.
• The most common symp-
toms of PAD involving the lower extremities are cramp- ing, pain or tiredness in the leg or hip muscles while walking or climbing stairs. Typically, this pain goes away with rest and returns when you walk again.
If you have DPN and pe- ripheral artery disease (PAD) those injuries will take longer to heal and on top of that, they don’t heal very well. With PAD (lack of blood flow to your limbs due to narrow arteries), a simple injury can develop into an infection and that’s the last thing you want to happen.
A series of other problems can arise due to PAD, includ- ing leg pain, discolored feet (bluish color) and gangrene.
PAD can be managed with medication along with a few simple lifestyle changes. That means quitting smoking, keeping your blood sugar lev- els steady, exercising regularly and eating healthy foods low in saturated fat and choles- terol.
If worse comes to worse, an angioplasty (a nonsurgical procedure) can be performed to widen those narrow arteries and increase blood flow to the limbs.
When you have diabetes, then you should know how impor- tant it is have open and honest communication with your doc- tor.
So, if you suspect that you may have DPN and/or PAD, schedule an appointment with your doctor ASAP.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2015 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 11-B