21 posts tagged “health”

We're pleased to announce another excellent book review in a new monthly glossy magazine called Diabetes Explorer. 

"Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes may well change your thinking about how you manage your diabetes," writes communications consultant and diabetes freelance writer Riva Greenberg.

"From chasing an impossible number on the scale to getting fit.  From thinking your blood glucose is all that counts to realizing the importance of blood pressure.  From feeling, woe-is-me overwhelmed by all there is to do, to zooming in on what counts.  Here, the Herculean task of managing diabetes is broken down into doable steps and given a 'why' and a 'therefore.'"
"I am a true believer in the old adage, 'You can't get where you're going if you don't know where you are.'  By taking these tests (described in the book) first, you will discover where you are. Second, you will better understand how these factors are important to your health.  Third, you will be better able to manage your diabetes."

You nailed it, Riva!   Dear Readers, please have a look at the full book review HERE.

My rather lengthy article based on our Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes Book finally appears in the Sept/Oct 2007 issue of Diabetes Self-Management magazine!

The article focus is, naturally, Avoiding Diabetic Complications.  It's titled "Nurturing Your Health Bank," (that's the online link) and you'll find it in the print version of the magazine on page 29.   Drawing from the book, the article explains how to "collect your numbers" -- A1c, blood pressure, lipid profile, microalbumin, and eye exam -- and then take appropriate action to become and stay as healthy as you possibly can be.  Lots of emphasis is placed on setting priorities, rather than trying to tackle everything at once.  

There's even a sample chart based on our "Diabetes Health Account" table.  I'm not sayin' you won't need to buy the book after reading this piece, but hey... it's pretty informative, if I do say so myself :)

Book News Flash from the blogosphere:

Christine Miserandino, who blogs about living with "invisible" chronic illness at ButYouDontLookSick.com has posted a

glowing review of Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes.

She recently discovered my blog, DiabetesMine.com, and has this to say:

"I found her writing to be easy to read and interesting (an unusual combination when reading health related writing) ... I was intrigued to see how her writing would read in book form.

"I was happy to read her book and have it contain the same style and 'voice' as her blog. This book has straight to the point facts that everyone dealing with diabetes and blood sugar issues should know.

"Dr. Richard Jackson and Amy Tenderich walk you through how to understand each of the five factors/ tests and then help you create a personalized treatment plan for optimum blood-glucose control, heart health, and general diabetes management and well being.

"I know that many of these medical tests, and numbers can be overwhelming, complicated and scary to many, especially to new patients dealing with this disease.

"This book helps you not only be more knowledgeable, but lets you know small things that you can do to improve your life, i.e.: exercise, food, and diet. It is great to have these two authors work together. You receive the medical expertise of a doctor, combined with the real life experience of a patient."

Best of all, she concludes her review this way:

"At 224 pages, this paperback book was a quick, but well worth the read. I would recommend this book for anyone you know who is living with diabetes or loving someone with diabetes."  (!)

Check out the book on Amazon, or order it with a free trial pack of ExtendBar slow-release glucose snacks HERE.

Dr. William Polonsky, author of Diabetes Burnout and founder of the San-Diego based Behavioral Diabetes Institute loves Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes.  Here's what he had to say:

"What a wonderful book!  While diabetes can feel confusing and overwhelming, we know that it doesn't have to be --

especially thanks to books like this.  The authors help you to understand and address the most important concerns about diabetes in an easy to read, but scientifically rigorous manner.  You will learn how well, or how poorly, you are managing your diabetes right now, and you will also learn exactly what steps you can take to be even more successful.  This book is full of hope, which is exactly what is needed when facing diabetes each day.  You do not need to feel overwhelmed any longer.  With good care, a good working relationship with your doctor, and by following the suggestions in this book, we know that the odds become better and better that you can live a long, healthy life with diabetes."

Thanks for the insights, Bill.  Check out the book on Amazon.com HERE.

MedGadget, the "internet journal of emerging medical technologies," has just posted a comprehensive review of Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes.

The piece is penned by the big man himself, executive director Dr. Michael Ostrovsky, a Daly City, CA, anesthesiologist. We are especially flattered since as far as we know, MedGadget doesn't post a lot of book reviews.  The site's self-proclaimed target audience is "tech-obsessed health care and bio medical professionals."

But Dr. O has been especially interested in our hands-on guide to good health with diabetes (now the country's fifth deadliest disease).  And God knows, there are lots of gadgets involved in good diabetes care these days.

"On the basics, the book is written in a clear, concise language, and is under 300 pages. Know Your Numbers contains a wealth of useful information for diabetics (both type I and type II) to manage their disease," Dr. O writes.  "The book is solid and is easy to read."

We'd like to thank the good doctor for his closing remarks as well: "We will not hold against Amy the fact that Medgadget was not included in its resources section."  Well, Dr. O, our target audience is just a little less geeky uh, techy.

For us, it's more about this: Got diabetes?  Need a little help understanding what to do about it? 
Check out the MedGadget book review HERE.

Kevin McMahon is President & CEO of Diabetech, makers of the GlucoMON wireless blood glucose monitoring system, the HomeCheck A1c system, and more.  He will be speaking on "remote diagnostics tools" at the upcoming

American Diabetes Association (ADA) Annual Conference in Chicago.  We're delighted to report that he has read Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes, and posted the following Amazon review:

"What a refreshing read! KISS for Diabetes might be an alternative title that describes this book and how people can approach their diabetes. As a healthcare technologist and provider of diabetes programs, we see patients all the time who don't know what to do and are standing in place with their diabetes. This is a progressive disease and if you don't keep up it can easily get away from you."

"Providing an easy to read guide that points out a few basic diagnostic tests (measure) and what those #s mean (understand), a person with minimal confidence and proficiency has a step by step guide for action (act)."

"I especially appreciated a key message on page 9, 'Learning to take care of your health is like learning to drive; with good driving skills you can successfully navigate your own road, and even take your own detours if need be. Taking control of your diabetes is therefore not a one-time deal but an ongoing program.'"

"My hope is that more people will pick up this book and understand that diabetes is about connecting the dots and making sense of your numbers as a reflection of where you've been, reorient yourself with that understanding and head off in a strategic direction. This book can help any person with diabetes to take that next step toward better control of their diabetes."

-- Kevin McMahon, President & CEO, Diabetech, LP
www.healthcordia.com

Wow!  And as if that weren't enough to make these two authors happy, the June issue of Costco's monthly member magazine, Costco Connection is out, with a nice write-up on the Know Your Numbers book on page 37.  Read the article HERE.

A little something for everyone connected to diabetes, ay?

No, we're not talking about DiabetesMine.com, although that IS what makes my blog tick, I hope.  This week, a few more

authorities had a look at our book, and dubbed it equally informative:

"Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes" is an absolute gold mine of
need-to-know diabetes information and resources.  It contains the perfect
blend of basic knowledge, assessment tools, and action plans to enable
anyone with diabetes to live a long and healthy life.  Take the advice in
this book to heart!

– Sheri Colberg, PhD, Author of "The 7-Step Diabetes Fitness Plan" and "50 Secrets of the Longest Living People with Diabetes."

                *   *   *

And from this month's Diabetes Health magazine "what to read" section:

"(Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes) cuts away the extraneous stuff and lays bare the essentials: There are five, and only five, critical numbers that you need to worry about. If you keep these five numbers where they should be, you’ll outlive your diabetes and prosper in good health. And the big five are: A1Cs; blood pressure; lipid levels (HDL and LDL cholesterol, triglycerides); microalbumin levels; and eye exam scores...

"The authors wrote the book as a “comprehensive, hands-on guide to successfully managing your own health,” and that’s what it is. After it gets your priorities squared away, it covers just about everything you need to know, from A to Z."

Still skeptical?  Have a closer look here.

Do you follow MedScape -- the clinician and healthcare-professional-focused sister site of WebMD?  Well, check out the author interview with myself and Dr. Jackson in the "Diabetes & Endocrinology" section, published yesterday. (Registration required, but it's free)

It's presented as the "Expert Interview" on our new book, "Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes" -- which was a lot of fun, since we did the interview in tandem, with Dr. J as the medical expert and myself as the expert on all the crap we go through living with this volatile disease.

A favorite snippet from Dr. Jackson:
"If you were running an insurance company and wanted to insure people with diabetes, and were trying to figure out their risk, these are the 5 numbers you'd want to know. And the numbers aren't so complicated that people can't understand them."

See why these numbers are so important? 

He also says:
"I'm involved in outreach programs at the Joslin Center, and we go into communities and do diabetes programs with free testing, so we get people who are interested in their diabetes. We ask, 'Have you heard of an A1C? Have you had an A1C test?' And only about 10% of people are what we call 'A1C aware.' "

"Blood pressure is a little better. Microalbumin -- hardly anyone has heard of it. People have had eye examinations, but they're not sure about the results... One of the fundamental points in our book is that first you have to find out where you are before you can get to where you're going."

Right. So get the book. Get the tests. Figure out where you're going. I hope the message that came across at MedScape was the urgency of educating patients about these tests, and motivating them to take control. 

A few more endorsements for Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes to share with you today.  Needless to say, we are delighted that so many prominent diabetes educators and fellow authors find our book useful and easy to read!

“The positive, person-focused approach presented by the authors was refreshing!  Rather than starting with

‘What is diabetes?’ this book immediately guides the reader through concrete ways of identifying their very own practical

strategy for ‘taking on’ their diabetes. The authors use numerical test results as an objective approach for guiding the person with diabetes to identify what self-care behaviors to tackle first. Self-care success is measured by using these test results to define personal actions that produce outcomes of health and well-being. This book is a must read for people with diabetes, their families, and all health professionals who need to understand that diabetes is about self-care!”

— Malinda M. Peeples, Immediate Past President, AADE (American Association of Diabetes Educators)

“Worrying about diabetes complications is stressful. But keeping the results of 5 essential tests in healthy ranges

should vastly reduce your risks of developing any complications. This book will help you to understand these tests and what your goals for the results should be, as well as what you can do to get them into healthy ranges. This should reduce your stress, and that, in turn, should make your diabetes easier to control.”

— Gretchen Becker, author of The First Year^® - Type 2 Diabetes and Prediabetes

News flash!  Two more exciting endorsements that came in just this week:

"Knowledge is power. This book provides important information that people with diabetes need for making decisions and taking charge of their health."

 — Martha M. Funnell, MS, RN, CDE,

University of Michigan Diabetes Research and Training Center

“There is no need to hide in fear of diabetic complications.  ‘Know Your Numbers’ takes some rather serious and complex issues and simplifies them so that everyone can benefit.  The ‘Health Account’ concept alone makes the book a must-read!”

— Gary Scheiner MS, CDE,

Owner/Director, Integrated Diabetes Services

Author, Think Like a Pancreas and The Ultimate Guide to Accurate Carb Counting