The festive season is about being with family and celebrating life! But excessive overindulging can have serious consequences. It’s Diabetes Awareness Month and we asked North Coast specialist endocrinologist Dr Tanya van der Made to share a bit about managing our weight while still enjoying the season.
1. Don’t ignore the signs or put off a medical check-up if you feel unwell.
2. Your weight matters, but don’t beat yourself up about it. Discuss weight issues with your doctor. Body mass index (BMI) is a quick guide to indicate if you are overweight but we also look at your muscle mass versus fat mass. We can’t rely on BMI alone and certain types of fat (and where it is deposited in your body) is more telling. We can help with appetite control, which often is a biological drive from the hypothalamus (part of your brain) and not your fault.
3. Diabetes does not happen overnight. Type 2 diabetes runs in families and if anyone in your family has type 2 diabetes, you are at risk. It happens slowly over time and is usually with associated weight gain. Type 1 diabetes is very different. As an autoimmune disease it can happen very quickly with weight loss and lead to a diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA).
4. Stop drinking sugary, fizzy drinks. They do not hydrate you. In fact, they can dehydrate you through a process of osmotic diuresis and make you feel thirstier. If you want a fizzy drink, opt for the sugar-free or diet version, but water or flavoured water is still best.
5. Diets and exercise. Seeing a good dietician is important as everything relies on what is going in. Dieticians should not give the same diet to every patient, as every person is different. The consensus, though, is that the Mediterranean diet is best and people who exercise three times a week have better outcomes. Go for a walk on the beach with the family – you don’t need a gym! Enjoy Greek take-out instead of burgers for a change. Learn to read food labels!
6. Your doctor matters. You should have an ongoing relationship with your doctor when it comes to diabetes and pre-diabetes because it is a chronic condition. However, medicine and research are not static, so you should not be on the same medication for years and years. If you have diabetes, we need to monitor outcomes from your glucose diary to clinical signs of target organ damage in the eyes, kidneys and heart, all the way to your feet.
7. Life is short. Don’t use this as an excuse to smoke and live unhealthily! Value every day by doing your best, one day at a time. Love your family and respect the pain they would feel if you were to get sick.
MEET DR VAN DER MADE
A specialist endocrinologist who graduated from Stellenbosch University and Tygerberg Hospital in the Western Cape. Currently working in private practice for the last two years in the Ballito and Umhlanga area. She is a mom of two boys and two rescued fur babies. “I am not a dietician and I can’t manage diabetes in isolation. I rely on a multi-disciplinary team of dieticians, ophthalmologists, neurologists, cardiologists and nephrologists, especially when patients have developed complications. First prize for me though is to prevent diabetes and my love for endocrinology stems from the fact that it can prevent pain and suffering in many cases.”
Details: www.doctorvdm.com, 066 397 0875
