Diabetic Digest - May 13, 2015

Readers:

My wife and I went out for dinner the other night. Before we had a chance to order I had some trouble with low blood sugar.

Some instances dealing with low blood sugar is not a problem, but then there are occasions where you're lucky to have someone with you to help. My wife is the best with that.

The only way I can describe to way I felt during dinner was like I was moving in slow motion and thinking at light speed. This never lends itself to well to keeping your diabetes in check.

My wife kept offering to run out to the car and get me some glucose tablets to help right the ship, but before I knew it I was running out to the parking lot to do it myself. What was I thinking? Something serious could of happened to me out there. Am I crazy?

That's why the rule is and always will be - "Always listen to your wife." It might just save your life.

Regards,
Steve

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Comments? Questions? Email Steve


*-- Diabetic News --*
Health care spending for privately insured kids with diabetes rises

WASHINGTON (UPI) - Health care spending generally goes up. For researchers, it's about locating the high-growth sectors. Not surprisingly, spending on diabetes has grown as more Americans are diagnosed with metabolic disease.

As a new study shows, health care spending on children with diabetes has been rising the most -- specifically those with private health insurance.

According to the study by the Health Care Cost Institute, spending for employer-insured children with diabetes rose 7 percent between 2011 and 2012, and 9.6 percent between 2012 and 2013.

The numbers are based on researchers' analysis of employer-provided insurance claims filed by or on behalf of some 40 million Americans below the age of 65. The study also found that among privately insured Americans, 5.3 percent were diagnosed with either Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes in 2013 -- up from 4.7 percent in 2009.

"The number of people with diabetes continues to grow, as does the health care spending for these individuals," David Newman, executive director of the Health Care Cost Institute, said in a press release. "We, and others, need to better understand the relationship between spending and actual health outcomes for people with diabetes, particularly children."

Researchers said one of the main reasons for the spending increase is that branded insulin is administered to children with diabetes more frequently than it is for older Americans with the disease.

"There has been extraordinary growth in health care spending for children with diabetes," explained researcher Amanda Frost. "It appears that higher spending on branded insulin is one factor influencing this trend. Moving forward, it will be important to continue to analyze these spending trends to see what else we can learn about how the way we manage diabetes contributes to its costs."

The study also found that health care spending is substantially higher for those with diabetes. Diabetes patients spent an average of about $10,000 more each year, or 70 percent more, than those without the disease.


*- Diabetic Recipe -*
Bagel Pizza
Servings: 2
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 15 minutes
Total: 20 minutes

Ingredients
1 4-ounce plain bagel, cut in half
1/4 cup pizza sauce
1 ounce part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 tsp oregano
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions
1. Preheat broiler. Position top oven rack 4 to 5 inches below source of heat.
2. Spread each bagel half with 2 tablespoons of the pizza sauce. Sprinkle evenly with the cheese, oregano, salt, and pepper.
3. Place prepared bagels on a baking sheet and broil for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes, until cheese melts and sauce bubbles.

Nutrition Information
Per serving (4-ounce bagel): 204 calories (14% calories from fat), 10 g protein, 3 g total fat (1.6 g saturated fat), 34 g carbohydrate, 2 g dietary fiber, 8 mg
cholesterol, 379 mg sodium
Exchanges: 1/2 medium fat meat, 2 carbohydrate (2 bread/starch), 1 vegetable

Original Recipe: Bagel Pizza

***
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