Do you know your BGL?
16 August 2002
Australians are being encouraged to get to know their blood glucose level – their ‘BGL’ — in a new public awareness campaign launched by Diabetes Australia.
‘Just as many people know their cholesterol or blood pressure. Australians who are at risk of diabetes should know their blood glucose level or BGL,’ said Dr Rosemary Stanton, nutritionist.
‘There is growing evidence . . . that we can delay or prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes through healthy eating and exercise programmes,’ she said.
Unfortunately, this advice comes too late for Sydney policeman Peter Moffat.
Peter went to a doctor complaining of drinking a lot of water, going to the toilet frequently and experiencing an unusual pain in his right forearm.
After some delays Peter was referred to a specialist and was told he had been living with type 2 diabetes for about 10-12 years. Peter retired early from the police force as he had developed retinopathy from diabetes and is unable to drive. Retinopathy means degenerative changes in the part of the eye called the retina.
‘Seeing as my diabetes went unchecked for so long, I now have to have insulin injections, tablets and make regular visits to my endocrinologist and ophthalmologist,’ said Peter.
‘I wish I had known about blood glucose levels and diabetes a long time ago. My future health has been endangered by living with a disease and not knowing about it for 10 years — why didn’t someone tell me about it?’
In the TV commercial launching the ‘Be well — know your BGL’ campaign, swimming legend Susie O’Neill encourages people to ask their GP about blood glucose at their next visit.
Susie urges all Australians to follow a high fibre diet, low in saturated fat and to follow a regular exercise routine to reduce their risk of developing type 2 diabetes and its complications.
The Director of the Diabetes Metabolism Program at the Garvan Institute, Professor David James, said: ‘Greater awareness of type 2 diabetes risk factors is crucial to ensure early diagnosis and to slow or avoid the progression of complications.
‘The reality is that type 2 diabetes can cause heart disease, blindness, kidney disease, limb amputation and premature death.'
The onset of type 2 diabetes is heavily influenced by age and lifestyle factors, and without proper management it is a serious health condition. However, with early diagnosis and appropriate care diabetes can be well managed, he said.
| Diabetes in Australia |
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More than 1000 people a week are being diagnosed with diabetes every week in Australia – making 54,500 people in the past 12 months. The total number of people with diabetes in Australia has reached more than half a million and Diabetes Australia estimates that there is the same amount of people again who remain undiagnosed.
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Last Reviewed: 20 August 2002
