Cancer Articles (Dr. S.N White)

My son wants to play football. Is that safe for a diabetic? There have been several outstanding diabetic football players. No diabetic evil ever befell them because of football. If your son's diabetes is without complications and in good control and his doctor doesn't disapprove, then there is no reason why he shouldn't play. There are two good reasons why he should. Participation in sports, especially a physically demanding one like football, will encourage him to take superb care of himself and his disease. For a young person, the incentive to keep in shape for football is far more powerful than a general incentive to watch one's health. Once your son has established good habits during his football playing days, there's a fair chance he'll stick with them throughout his life. He should be allowed to play football for psychological reasons as well. If his diabetes keeps him from playing football, he'll get the idea that because of diabetes he can...

It's tough not to get mad. You're human too and sometimes you have a visceral reaction that you can't control. Just do your best to keep calm enough to help your roommate get out of the reaction, even if he fights you on it. After the incident is over you'll probably both laugh about it. Once June had low blood sugar and became furious because she thought Barbara had eaten her dish of strawberries (which she had actually eaten herself, but couldn't remember). After her anger came despair, as she wept over her disappointment about the strawberries she had so looked forward to. With a baleful look at Barbara, she kept wailing, "You stole my strawberries." Throughout all this wrath and woe, she steadfastly refused to eat anything else to bring up her blood sugar because, "The only thing I wanted was those strawberries and you ate them." In retrospect, the incident seems funny to us,but while it was going on it was like a scene out of Eugene O'...

First, accept it yourself. Children are great little chameleons. They pick up the attitudes and emotions of parents faster than you can say "Jackie Robinson." If you have the attitude that your child's diabetes is a disaster and a loathsome burden, that's the attitude your child is likely to develop. If you take his or her diabetes in your stride, accept the restrictions of the disease, and work positively toward helping him or her learn how to lead a full life, you'll instill these positive attitudes by living example. Incidentally, your question hit on the number one, foremost, important adjustment attitude for a diabetic acceptance. It may be the hardest to come by, but once acceptance is there, all the rest is relatively easy.

What can I do for my diabetic child? There are many things you can do. You can help the child accept the disease and teach him or her how to take care of it. You can encourage diabetic children to achieve whatever they want to achieve in life despite diabetes. But there's one extremely important thing parents sometimes fail to do because they don't know it needs to be done that's to help them get rid of some of the terrible fears that diabetic children carry around inside and suffer over and don't talk about. Dr. Robert Rood, a San Fernando Valley diabetologist who works with children and adolescents, told a story about a child at a summer camp where he was serving as physician. This girl was a model camper, full of fun and very popular. Dr. Rood, in checking out her urine tests, discovered that her one shot of insulin a day wasn't doing the job, so he decided to divide her insulin into two doses morning and evening. This worked fine. Her blood sugar returne...

Are flu shots necessary for diabetics? They don't always work because there are often so many different strains of flu going around that you get zapped by one your shot doesn't cover. Still, we think they're a good idea. Flu can upset control of blood sugar for insulin takers and flu shots are usually recommended for older people. Put those two groups together and you've just about covered the whole diabetic population. Since flu shots themselves can cause rather heavy flu symptoms in susceptible beings, it's sometimes wise to take two half doses at different times. June always does this with flu shots and with shots she has to take for foreign travel as well.

I have a bad case of acne. Could this be caused by my diabetes? Possibly. Some diabetics report that they have acne when their diabetes is out of control and that it clears up when their blood sugar is stabilized. Then again, it's possible that your acne has nothing to do with your diabetes. Many diabetics have a tendency to figure that every physical problem that appears from acne to Zenker's diverticulum of the esophagus is related to their diabetes. When June had chronic headaches, she at first thought they were caused by low blood sugar. It turned out they had nothing to do with diabetes. It is true that diabetes, especially out-of-control diabetes, can cause a variety of minor and not so minor health problems. Still, you should try to avoid laying the blame for everything on diabetes. Not only does this make you feel more depressed and put upon, but it may also cause you to delay seeking treatment for whatever your problem really is.

Is it all right for a diabetic to use hot tubs? According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, all people who have diabetes, a history of heart disease, or blood pressure problems should check with a doctor on the advisability of using a hot tub. They also caution that nobody should bathe in a hot tub with water that is 104 degrees F. or higher, since water of 106 degrees F. can be fatal even to fully healthy adults. (Barbara, who considers herself a fully healthy adult, gets rather frightening nosebleeds after sitting in Japanese baths or hot springs.) The preceding section on foot care explained that you shouldn't put your feet in water above 85 degrees F. or 90 degrees F Since it's a little awkward to soak in a hot tub with your feet hanging out, it looks as if tepid tubs should be the order of the day for diabetics.

Smoking and Diabetes Smoking is dangerous for everyone, but doubly dangerous for diabetics. Inhaling cigarette smoke affects the blood vessels. Diabetes can affect the blood vessels. Both diabetes and smoking tend to narrow them, and narrowed arteries can cause heart disease and gangrene. A diabetic has 2.5 times the normal chances of getting heart disease. A smoker has 1.7 times the normal chances of dying of heart disease. Put the two together and you have over four times the normal risk of heart disease. A diabetic has sixty times the normal chances of getting gangrene of the feet. Again, smoking increases that already dismal figure. A study done at the University Hospital in Copenhagen, Denmark, found that diabetic patients who smoked required 15 to 20 percent more insulin than nonsmokers. Their level of blood fats was also higher. You might call smoking a kind of Virginia roulette for diabetics. So why are there diabetic smokers? That's a question we have no answer...

Are artificial sweeteners all right for a diabetic? Well, they're better than downing an equal quantity of sugar. An occasional artificially sweetened drink is pleasant. We've found an especially good artificially sweetened tonic called Thintonic. Certain desserts like custard, gelatin, and pudding would be pretty dismal without some sweetening, and, if the sweetening is artificial, you can eat a more normal size portion than if you were using sugar. June also confesses a fondness for Alba Fit'N Frosty milk shakes and their hot chocolate, both of which are artificially sweetened. It's not, however, a good idea to load up on huge quantities of anything, especially anything chemical. You never know when it's going to dawn on the Food and Drug Administration that some chemical on their GRAS (generally recognized as safe) list has harmful side effects, as happened with cyclamates and as could happen with saccharine. One way to avoid getting too much of any one che...

Do I have to measure my food? Yes, it's the only way to be sure you're getting the amount of food your diet specifies. It's not easy to recognize a half cup of orange juice or rice, unless you've measured them out a few times, and six grams of beef would be even harder. A food scale is a good investment in the beginning of your diabetic days to get you on the right measuring track. If you're really conscientious about weighing and measuring your food at first, you'll be amazed at how quickly you learn to eye measure or, as with bread, hand-weigh, when you're out to dinner at a friend's house or in a restaurant. (Hint: sometimes it helps to discreetly nudge your food into little piles, the better to estimate the quantity.) You may get so good at this eye measuring and hand weighing that you can do weight and quantity guessing parlor tricks, like the guy who guesses weights at the circus. Of course, the real and worthwhile trick is using your skill to...

Do I have to exercise? A better question would be, "Isn't it terrific that such an enjoyable activity as exercise is a basic part of diabetes therapy?" The answer to both questions is yes. Although exercise is often a neglected area in diabetes care, getting the right amount of exercise is just as important as following a good eating plan if not more important. Weve heard it said that if you had to make a choice between eating junk food and exercising or eating a perfectly healthy diet and being immobile, you'd be healthier eating the junk food and exercising. Of course, a diabetic doesn't have to make that choice in fact, can't make it. You need both exercise and good food for optimum health and blood sugar control. Exercise is almost a magic formula for diabetics. If you're too thin usually the lean insulin-dependent types it will help you gain needed pounds by causing you to utilize your food better. Since it acts like an "invisible insulin...

Will I be able to follow my diet in restaurants? Of course. It won't be as easy as following it at home where you can select and measure everything to make sure you're getting exactly what you need, but with a little experience and ingenuity it can be done. In fact, it is done by diabetics every day. At first, when you're just getting started with diabetes, you might want to check out the restaurant ahead of time to see what they have on the menu that would be right for you. This gives you time in advance to figure out what you want to order. You can also find out if they have, for example, fruit for dessert rather than something gloppy and sweet. If they don't you can bring along a piece of fruit and either eat it there or ear it after vou leave Checking out the restaurant ahead of time is also a good idea because you'll know if it's open or not. Sometimes on a trip June has gone out to a restaurant recommended in a travel book or article only to find it...