GUY’S GOTTA TALK ABOUT…TYPE 2 DIABETES #43: Memories Are Sometimes All We Have…

For the first time since I started this blog eleven years ago, it’s going to be about me. I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes four years ago. While people are happy to talk about their experiences with diabetes, I WASN’T comfortable with talking about diabetes. The “other Type” of diabetes was what caused the death of my Best Man a year after my wife and I got married. He was diagnosed with diabetes when he was a kid. It was called Juvenile Diabetes then. Today it’s Type 1. I haven’t WANTED to talk about diabetes at all. But…for my own education and maybe helping someone else, and not one to shut up for any known reason, I’m reopening my blog rather than starting a new one. I MAY take a pause and write about Breast Cancer or Alzheimer’s as medical headlines dictate; but this time I’m going to drag anyone along who wants to join my HIGHLY RELUCTANT journey toward better understanding of my life with Type 2 Diabetes. You’re Welcome to join me!

I’m on a bit of a “memory kick” right now, as I’ve been thinking about a group of adolescent boys at the church I met my wife at…in particular because the one “kid” I got the most involved with (mom divorced, dad very absent, the kid had a very soft heart…) just lost his wife of 19 years to an aggressive form of cancer they’d been treating for the past seven years. Before that, another “youth kid” from my church (we were quite a bit closer in age), became good friends and often lapsed into having deeply theological discussions. His bane was that he was Type 1 diabetic and nursed a very deep sense of hurt that God gave him the bane and did nothing to heal it. He died after suffocating in a water bed following a diabetic seizure, after the birth of his second child, a little girl…who is not LONGER a little girl…That was MY first experiencing diabetes up close and personal…

My own wife was diagnosed and beat breast cancer (the entire series on my blog about THAT shitty experience is linked to your right…but started on Saturday, April 9, 2011 with “Observations of a Breast Cancer Husband”…

Then we passed through a period leading to the death of my mother, having lived several years deeply aware that my dad had descended into the deteriorating fog of Alzheimer’s.

Fifteen years, a couple months, and a double-handful of days have passed, and our kids are successful, have married, moved out, and granted us the joy of three spouses, and four grandchildren…

Now both my wife and I are Type 2 diabetics; and living in the SECOND quarter of the 21st Century. Technology today as well as plans of treatment are no long a death sentence for Type 1 diabetics; and us Type 2, using a combination of blood sugar monitors, wise food choices, and even wiser medical supervision, have a very good chance of living long and healthy lives; for example, myself: “…because life expectancy factors in infant and early mortality, males from this birth cohort who have already reached age 65 can expect to live to approximately 78 to 80 years on average.” How about this? Same question, but adding “diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes”: “roughly 15 to 21 additional years, meaning an average life expectancy of 84 to 90 years. However, this number is an estimate. Life expectancy relies heavily on when the condition was diagnosed and how well it is managed.

Note to self: try harder (perhaps more emphatically, “JUST DO IT YOU DUMB…”) Ahem…use this fact to kick yourself in the butt when you feel like stuffing your face with sweets or lazing around the house and skipping your four mile ride around the lake…

Source: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2663724/

Image: https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41J0VUNJ8ML._SY445_SX342_QL70_FMwebp_.jpg

DIABETES RESEARCH RIGHT NOW! #43 KETO and Type 2 Diabetes??? Who Knew?

From the first moment I discovered I had been diagnosed with DIABETES, I joined a HUGE “club” that has been rapidly expanding since it stopped being a death sentence in the early 20th Century. Currently, there are about HALF A BILLION PEOPLE who have Type 2 Diabetes. For the past 3500 years – dating back to Ancient Egypt – people have suffered from diabetes. Well, I’m one of them now… Not one to shut up for any known reason, I added a section to this blog…Every month, I’ll be highlighting Diabetes research that is going on RIGHT NOW! Harvested from different websites, journals and podcasts, I’ll translate them into understandable English and share them with you. Today: I’ve seen it and read the word – but what is a “keto” and how could it possibly help help me in my struggle against Type 2 Diabetes???

The paper opens with “We showed that three months of a ketogenic diet was able to improve beta-cell function in patients with type 2 diabetes, and these improvements were associated with changes in the proinsulin-C-peptide ratio, a biomarker of pancreas stress….Other than bariatric surgery or large-volume intentional weight loss, interventions for improving beta-cell function in type 2 diabetes do not currently exist.”

So: “In English PLEASE!”

First of all, is a “ketogenic diet” the same as “being on keto” (Or is it “going keto” or “On a keto diet”?) “The ketogenic or keto diet…” Answer to first question is “Yes, they are the same thing.”

Second then, is what the HECK is a “keto diet”: it’s a diet that “includes eating high-fat, low-carbohydrate foods to reach ketosis. In ketosis, the body uses fat for fuel, instead of sugar (glucose). This produces acids known as ketones.”

Something I’ve never read in these glowing advertisements for these FABULOUS “Keto Diets” is that ketones STINK: “It is a very common and predictable side effect that occurs when your body enters ketosis”, ketone breath has been “compared to your breath smelling like acetone (aka, nail polish remover), paint thinner, rotten fruit, or sweetly metallic…” YUMMY!

Second, it basically ditches balanced eating: “…eating different amounts of fat, protein and carbs in a day.” It breaks out like this, besides the fact that you weigh everything (the science is sound here – you’re balancing the fats, proteins and carbs in order to lose weight and become more healthy.) It looks like this: “four grams of fat for every 1 gram of combined protein/carb eaten throughout the day. Avoiding all carb-rich foods (like pasta, potatoes, fruit, etc.) is key here. Also, for every serving of protein-rich food, you need four servings of a fatty food (heavy cream, avocado, olive oil, full fat cheese, etc.)”.

So, let’s say we do this. It will “…improve beta-cell function in patients with type 2 diabetes; the improvements were associated with changes in the proinsulin-C-peptide ratio, a biomarker of pancreas stress….”

And I’m lost again…what is a “proinsulin-C-peptide ratio”? In plain English: “…A proinsulin-C-peptide ratio is a lab test that measures how hard your pancreas is working to produce insulin. In the pancreas, proinsulin is the inactive "raw material" your body builds into insulin – which you need to change glucose into something your CELLS can use. The pancreas chops the proinsulin in half, turning it into active, usable insulin. The C-peptide is the leftover "waste" and is dumped. When everything is working perfectly, your pancreas easily chops up all the raw proinsulin into ready-to-use building blocks for insulin. BUT, if your pancreas is under heavy strain it gets overwhelmed and starts dumping unfinished, "raw" proinsulin into the bloodstream before it has a chance to fully process it, You now have high levels of unfinished proinsulin compared to C-peptide. It is a warning sign that your beta cells are struggling and may be a predictor for developing diabetes.”

So, properly managed, a keto diet can HELP repair OUR messed up pancreas – NOT heal it, but help it work better. So, the choice is ours; at least now you have somewhere to start when you ask your doctor if a keto diet is something you want to try…

Links: https://www.endocrine.org/news-and-advocacy/news-room/2026/keto-diet-may-improve-beta-cell-function-in-people-with-type-2-diabetes, https://health.ucdavis.edu/blog/good-food/what-is-the-keto-diet-and-can-it-be-beneficial-for-you/2025/05 Image: https://asploro.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Diabetes-Research_Open-Access.jpg

MY FIRST POST at GUY’S GOTTA TALK ABOUT…DIABETES #1 The Diagnosis

Sunday, October 16, 2022

This was the  first time since I started POSSIBLY IRRITATING ESSAYS almost NINETEEN years ago, that I made it about me. The week of October 16, 2022, I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. While people are happy to talk about their experiences with diabetes, I WASN’T comfortable with talking about diabetes. My wife is Type 2, as are several friends of ours. The “other Type” of diabetes was what caused the death of my Best Man a year after my wife and I got married. He was diagnosed with diabetes when he was a kid. It was called Juvenile Diabetes then. Today it’s Type 1 diabetes. Since then, I haven’t WANTED to talk about diabetes at all. But…for my own education and maybe helping someone else, and not one to shut up for any known reason, I’m reopening my blog rather than starting a new one. I MAY take a pause and write about Breast Cancer or Alzheimer’s as medical headlines dictate; but this time I’m going to drag anyone along who wants to join my HIGHLY RELUCTANT journey toward better understanding of my life with Type 2 Diabetes. You’re Welcome (???) to join me!

When I sat down with the Diabetes Education counselor, it was no surprise that I was there.

I’ve been pre-diabetic for a few years. I knew I could change my diagnosis if I just followed a few simple steps. I needed to lose weight, exercise more, and eat right. My response to that knowledge was, “Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’ll get to it! Besides I eat pretty good. I ride my bike! I sometimes lose weight!”

Well, the jig is up. I’ve been caught with my proverbial pants down (sorta like the scene in SPIDER-MAN: A Long Way From Home. Nothing evil going down, but he got caught getting ready to put on the black suit that ultimately inspired Ned to call him Night Monkey.) I’m now officially diabetic.

What’s that mean? (TOTALLY UN)Funny you should ask!

I now have a blood sugar monitor kit of my very own. I used it for the first time this morning. My blood sugar level was 173, which my phone tells me is “high”.

And that means, what? Yeah, here’s where the educating myself well enough to understand comes in, plus a little bit of Translating the Doctors.

First a BRIEF history of diabetes (HIGHLY condensed from the Wikipedia article: Diabetes was one of the first diseases described by Human medicine. The term “diabetes” or “to pass through” was first used in 230 BCE by the Greek Apollonius of Memphis

Two types of diabetes were identified as separate conditions for the first time by the Indian physicians Sushruta and Charaka in 400–500 CE with one type being associated with youth and another type with being overweight. It took a long time to create an effective treatment. The early part of the 20th century for Canadians Banting and Best who finally isolated and purified insulin. We’ve known for a fact what causes diabetes FOR A HUNDRED YEARS…

What is blood sugar? It’s pretty simple: “Blood sugar, or glucose, is the main sugar found in your blood. It comes from the food you eat, and is your body's main source of energy. Your blood carries glucose to all of your body's cells to use for energy.”

And what does that have to do with diabetes? “Diabetes is a disease in which your blood sugar levels are too high. Over time, having too much glucose in your blood can cause serious problems…Himsworth published research that differentiated between type 1 and type 2 diabetes. He theorized that many people had insulin resistance rather than insulin deficiency. Insulin resistance is one factor that leads to type 2 diabetes. When a person has insulin resistance, their body cells lose their sensitivity to insulin and are not able to take in glucose. In response, the pancreas increases its output of insulin.”

What’s a NORMAL blood sugar? “Fasting normal blood sugar for a person without diabetes: 70–99 mg/dl (This is what my monitor shows. The funny letters after mean “milligrams per deciliter” or how much glucose (in milligrams – like what most of you antibiotics and Tylenol/Advil/Aleve is measured in) there is in a deciliter (which is one tenth of a liter or about the bottom of a two liter bottle of pop).” Official ADA recommendation for someone with diabetes: 80–130 mg/dl (4.4–7.2 mmol/L) when you get up in the morning (fasting level) and less than 180 mg/dl after you’ve had a meal.”

What KIND of serious problems can insulin resistance (Type 2 diabetes) cause? “stresses the pancreas (where insulin is made) damaging it. Diabetes is a major cause of blindness, kidney failure, heart attacks, stroke and lower limb amputation. Diabetes and kidney disease due to diabetes caused an estimated 2 million deaths.

And WHAT THE @#$&!* can I do about it? A healthy diet, regular physical activity, maintaining a normal body weight and avoiding tobacco use are ways to prevent or delay the onset of type 2 diabetes. How much am I SUPPOSED to weigh? (If you want to know about yourself, click here, supply the numbers and it will tell you! ( https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/323446#body-mass-index-bmi ) I weigh 255 pounds. I should be between 136-172 pounds. So…to be safe, I need to lose 150 pounds…

“Diabetes can be treated and its consequences avoided or delayed with diet, physical activity, medication and regular screening and treatment for complications.” No other sentence I have ever typed sounded so incredibly SIMPLE and terrifyingly DIFFICULT...I have my work cut out for me and it’s (finally) time to get serious.

Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diabetes, https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/317484#non-insulin-treatment, https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/diabetes,
For MORE details: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_diabetes
Image: https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41J0VUNJ8ML._SY445_SX342_QL70_FMwebp_.jpg

DIABETES RESEARCH RIGHT NOW! #42 Fighting Diabetes Stigma, One Joke at a Time

From the first moment I discovered I had been diagnosed with DIABETES, I joined a HUGE “club” that has been rapidly expanding since it stopped being a death sentence in the early 20th Century. Currently, there are about HALF A BILLION PEOPLE who have Type 2 Diabetes. For the past 3500 years – dating back to Ancient Egypt – people have suffered from diabetes. Well, I’m one of them now… Not one to shut up for any known reason, I added a section to this blog…Every month, I’ll be highlighting Diabetes research that is going on RIGHT NOW! Harvested from different websites, journals and podcasts, I’ll translate them into understandable English and share them with you. Today: The Stigma of  Diabetes

I’m a funny guy.

My family, friends, church members, former students, grandchildren…and even my WIFE will attest to it. I’m funny.

Which made me start to wonder with anyone was trying to face and deal with Type 2 diabetes with humor?

Turns out, they DO!

A couple years ago (Winter 2024), a group of comedians, artists, and activists gathered together under the sponsorship of DiaTribe to brainstorm, write, and create a series of videos aimed at destigmatizing diabetes. “Broadly, the videos aim to spotlight surprising facts about diabetes, increase familiarity and respect, counter harmful stereotypes and misconceptions, and encourage laughter and curiosity over judgment.”

So – what can this do to HELP me deal with being a T2 Diabetic? Or even a Type 1…can’t imagine that, though trying to deal with the self-separating issues that come from few (if anyone) really understanding not ONLY what that meant for your life, but being unable – NOT because you’re fat, disabled, or something else that people might understand for you staying out of sports…but because you’re “a diabetic” and people wondering how THAT could keep you from playing any sport at all. That was what happened to Greg; my long-time buddy and friend. He was one of the most understanding – and obNOXIOUSLY funny people I have ever known! You’d think that would have kept him happy…but his ban (personal, parental, or doctoral, he never said…) from being an athlete. It hurt him.

At any rate, these commercials and the goal of this group, make me think of Greg…so I share them with you. If you know someone who struggles with T1 or T2 diabetes, watch these, think, then make a plan to make their lives more fun. At least, more “seen” and less “blamed”.

So follow a couple of them, follow all of them.

Then talk to someone who is diabetic and find out if there’s anything you can do to help – or if you should just shut up about it. Or refuse to talk about it and ask them to teach you. THEN shut up.

(A related post of mine regarding the stigma of being T2...

https://breastcancerreaper.blogspot.com/2026/03/guys-gotta-talk-abouttype-2-diabetes_01835368122.html

Links: https://diatribe.org/mental-health/fighting-diabetes-stigma-one-joke-time , https://www.dstigmatize.org/
Commercial 1: Above the Bias: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqelmrbFdbU

Commercial 2: DiabetesCanada: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhrGmtO3g6o
Commercial 3: Spoonful of Laughter
https://diatribe.org/understanding-diabetes/spoonful-laughter-defeating-diabetes-stigma-comedy
Commercial 4: THIS ONE IS FUNNY!!! From DIATRIBE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNuzrPO6Rko&list=PLTSsBI6NOrskpJp0iZlEBJMuw4D9ep8Yx&index=1
Commercial 5: NOT so funny, but hopeful!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2dAlR6NGho&list=PLTSsBI6NOrskpJp0iZlEBJMuw4D9ep8Yx&index=5
Commercial 6: Not exactly funny…but kinda creepy…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmp0kRqlHE4&list=PLTSsBI6NOrskpJp0iZlEBJMuw4D9ep8Yx&index=15

IMAGE: https://asploro.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Diabetes-Research_Open-Access.jpg

GUY’S GOTTA TALK ABOUT…TYPE 2 DIABETES #42: How About I Make A SMART Choice FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A LONG TIME!

For the first time since I started this blog eleven years ago, it’s going to be about me. I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes two weeks ago. While people are happy to talk about their experiences with diabetes, I WASN’T comfortable with talking about diabetes. My wife is Type 2, as are several friends of ours. The “other Type” of diabetes was what caused the death of my Best Man a year after my wife and I got married. He was diagnosed with diabetes when he was a kid. It was called Juvenile Diabetes then. Today it’s Type 1. Since then, I haven’t WANTED to talk about diabetes at all. But…for my own education and maybe helping someone else, and not one to shut up for any known reason, I’m reopening my blog rather than starting a new one. I MAY take a pause and write about Breast Cancer or Alzheimer’s as medical headlines dictate; but this time I’m going to drag anyone along who wants to join my HIGHLY RELUCTANT journey toward better understanding of my life with Type 2 Diabetes. You’re Welcome to join me!

OK – in my regular reading of Type 2 diabetes research, here’s one I have NOT seen before: “In people with type 2 diabetes [who are] overweight…modest weight loss improves glycemia and reduces the need for glucose-lowering medications…greater weight loss substantially reduces A1C and fasting glucose and may promote sustained diabetes remission…”

Let me interpret this as I unpack it. First of all – I’ve been diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes for several years now. (CHECK!) My ideal weight for my height and age? Hmmm…never looked it up/used a tool. So, here goes: I’m 69, about 5’10”. My ideal weight should be between 132-173 pounds. My ACTUAL weight as of this morning? “Nunnayerbeezwax!” OK…fine, this morning I weighed in a 237.2 pounds. Even on the HEAVIER end of the ideal, I’m about one 7-year-old grandchild overweight…

OK – I’m feeling guilty! So what am I supposed to do? Here are their recommendations:

“Metabolic surgery, which results in an average >20% body weight loss, greatly improving glycemia and often leading to remission of diabetes, improved quality of life, improved cardiovascular outcomes, and reduced mortality. Several therapeutic modalities, including intensive behavioral and lifestyle counseling, weight management pharmacotherapy, and metabolic surgery, may aid in achieving and maintaining meaningful weight loss and reducing obesity-associated health risks.”

Translations are hereby ordered: “metabolic surgery” = removal of a portion of my stomach. Medically? Nah…equally incomprehensible. How about in “normal man language”? Here we go! “A large part of the stomach is removed, leaving a banana-shaped tube…” OK…here’s a ROCK HARD PASS!!!!!

NEXT! “…A small pouch is made from the stomach and connected directly to the small intestine, skipping most of the stomach and first part of the intestines…” iow: food you eat skips the stomach and guts to get shit out unchanged…That’s disgusting even to me as a science geek/former science teacher (I taught all of them: life science, earth science, physical science (chemistry+physics), biology, chemistry, and physics; levels special-education to English Language Learners to “average students” to International Baccalaureate students.) Once again, ROCK HARD PASS!!!

In the end? “Metabolic surgery goes beyond just eating less; it changes the body's internal biology to fight obesity-related diseases, with studies showing it can be more effective for diabetes and long-term weight management than lifestyle changes.” OK – let me translate: “with studies showing it can be more effective for diabetes and long-term weight management than lifestyle changes” this obviously means that DON’T BOTHER TRYING TO CHANGE YOUR BEHAVIOR! GET EXTREME AND EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE SURGERIES THAT DO NOTHING TO CHANGE THE ROOT CAUSE OF YOU BEING OVERWEIGHT (and as a fat person myself, I am evaluating this in light of what such drastic surgery would mean for me. Maybe I just have a weak personality and an aversion to supporting an industry that makes certain people wealthy by convincing me to “DO THE EXPENSIVE THING, IT MUST BE THE BEST!”

OK – so what if all of the above “suck the big one!!!!!”

Is there something ELSE I can do? Here’s one: “intensive behavioral and lifestyle counseling”. Translation? “They go beyond handouts with health tips. The programs engage with your family to provide face-to-face opportunities to practice healthy behaviors. An IHLBT (Intensive Health Behavior and Lifestyle Treatment)program helps you change behavior in ways that are individualized… utilizing community health educators, dietitians and exercise specialists. They can take place within normal community-based organizations. It ALSO includes

non-judgmental activities that boost your self-esteem by focusing on health, not weight. Activities focus on physical activity, healthy nutrition involving the whole household to join to thrive in a healthy environment. There is a strong focus on changes to ENJOY and keep up after the program has ended. ALSO – encouraging time spent on activities, and changing routines and habits. It CAN’T happen overnight, and IHBLT programs work best when they offer plenty of time—26 hours or more, over 3 to 12 months working to help people along with their families – succeed.” [Adapted for my own life based on an article posted here:] https://www.healthychildren.org/English/health-issues/conditions/obesity/Pages/what-is-intensive-health-behavior-and-lifestyle-treatment-IHBLT.aspx?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=69654055&gbraid=0AAAAADyMpZG8kPPcbF7zA1ZXQPb5UZT7b&gclid=Cj0KCQjw77bPBhC_ARIsAGAjjV_pyGT3IxIweAYV7Xn9C21WV0jI235z_oCBVEBc0Ft94SzbFJmE7BIaAjzCEALw_wcB

THIS is something I can get behind and work at! Look for comments on this change in my own lifestyle and whether I’ve been able to implement them in future posts!”

Source: https://diabetesjournals.org/care/article/48/Supplement_1/S167/157555/8-Obesity-and-Weight-Management-for-the-Prevention
Image: https://www.hcd.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/living-well-with-/diabetes.jpg

GUY’S GOTTA TALK ABOUT…TYPE 2 DIABETES #38: Dancing With Ozempic and Sheer HORROR...

For the first time since I started this blog eleven years ago, it’s going to be about me. I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes two weeks ago. While people are happy to talk about their experiences with diabetes, I WASN’T comfortable with talking about diabetes. My wife is Type 2, as are several friends of ours. The “other Type” of diabetes was what caused the death of my Best Man a year after my wife and I got married. He was diagnosed with diabetes when he was a kid. It was called Juvenile Diabetes then. Today it’s Type 1. Since then, I haven’t WANTED to talk about diabetes at all. But…for my own education and maybe helping someone else, and not one to shut up for any known reason, I’m reopening my blog rather than starting a new one. I MAY take a pause and write about Breast Cancer or Alzheimer’s as medical headlines dictate; but this time I’m going to drag anyone along who wants to join my HIGHLY RELUCTANT journey toward better understanding of my life with Type 2 Diabetes. You’re Welcome to join me!

Ozempic is killing us.

Not the drug, but the ABSURD PRICE THE DRUG COMPANY IS CHARGING US:

$800 (yup. EIGHT HUNDRED DOLLARS for a few milligrams of the T2 drug I take to control my diabetes...that OTHER people take so they can eat candy bars, sugared soda, toast, and sweetened cereal and NOT CARE!)

We will have to pay this same price again once I run out of this set of injections and my Medicare co-pay kicks in. JUST SO YOU KNOW, I TOOK A PICTURE OF THE COST I WAS QUOTED...AND IT'S VANISHED...HMMM...I WONDER HOW THAT HAPPENED?!?!?!??!?!

So, I’ve decided to fight back: “GUY’S GOTTA TALK ABOUT…TYPE 2 DIABETES #39B: A MONTH After Switching To Ozempic Every OTHER Week” The science ALSO supports this move, at least for me. https://breastcancerreaper.blogspot.com/2026/03/guys-gotta-talk-abouttype-2-diabetes.html

HOWEVER...

The BIGGEST problem is that the drug company that makes Ozempic found out that people who are NOT diabetic want to use it to lose weight: “Data analyzed by Trillian Health, and reported by CNN, shows that a third of patients on Ozempic have no history of diabetes. This means that doctors are prescribing the drug “off-label,” presumably for another condition, such as weight loss. The off-label prescription of Ozempic is up to a third, or 33%, from 16% in 2021. Many doctors may feel as though they have no choice but to prescribe Ozempic to their patients who are clamoring for semaglutide to help in their weight loss. Even if doctors wanted to write a prescription for Wegovy, they may not have been able to.” https://medicine.iu.edu/blogs/bioethics/on-the-increase-in-use-of-glp-1s#:~:text=Data%20analyzed%20by%20Trillian%20Health,not%20have%20been%20able%20to.

However, THE most alarming thing strikes through to the heart of the career I had for 41 years?

“…a national study from Michigan Medicine shows that the use of these weight loss drugs is increasing rapidly in adolescents and young adults 12-25 years, especially females.” https://www.michiganmedicine.org/health-lab/young-people-are-increasingly-using-wegovy-and-ozempic

WHAT KIND OF MESSAGES ARE US ADULTS SENDING TO OUR (The collective SOCIETAL “our”) CHILDREN?

Source: See embedded links above…

Image: https://doralhw.org/wp-content/webp-express/webp-images/uploads/2025/07/Type-2-Diabetes-2048x1365.jpg.webp

DIABETES RESEARCH RIGHT NOW! #41: New Therapy Aims To Cure Type 1 Diabetes (By rebuilding insulin cells and training the immune system to protect them!); Type 2 Using Stem Cells To Regrow Islet of Langerhans Cells Promising…

From the first moment I discovered I had been diagnosed with DIABETES, I joined a HUGE “club” that has been rapidly expanding since it stopped being a death sentence in the early 20th Century. Currently, there are about HALF A BILLION PEOPLE who have Type 2 Diabetes. For the past 3500 years – dating back to Ancient Egypt – people have suffered from diabetes. Well, I’m one of them now… Not one to shut up for any known reason, I added a section to this blog…Every month, I’ll be highlighting Diabetes research that is going on RIGHT NOW! Harvested from different websites, journals and podcasts, I’ll translate them into understandable English and share them with you. Today: A daring new therapy aims to cure type 1 diabetes by rebuilding insulin cells — and training the immune system to protect them.

WHOA!!!

This has been something the Community has been talking about for years! Currently, at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), researcher Leonardo Ferreira, Ph.D. somehow re-starting the pancreas to produce insulin for Type 1 diabetics.

The team specializes in modifying the immune system using chimeric antigen receptors. These receptors help guide “regulatory T cells” or Tregs, to specific targets in the body. These Tregs are important in keeping immune responses under control. The immune response is the body’s way of sending “troops” to destroy infections – colds, flu, and germs that get into your body through cuts and even surgery. Type 1 is a “mistake” of the body that leads to it attacking itself.

In simple terms, immune system (white blood cells, act like bodyguards, preventing the immune system from going too far and harming healthy tissue.

By combining stem cell biology, gene editing, and immune regulation, the team is developing more than a single therapy. They are building a framework for teaching the body to repair itself. If successful, this work could eventually free patients from daily insulin injections and shift type 1 diabetes care from lifelong management to a true cure.

"I think this can change how medicine is done," Ferreira said. "Instead of treating symptoms, we can actually replace the missing cells. By doing this work, we are likely to further understand how T1D starts, how it develops and how it can be treated."

Likewise, there have been advances in treating Type 2 research. “The Stem Cell Medical Center of Antigua has expertise and cutting-edge approaches that go beyond symptom management to address the root causes of this challenging condition. Stem cell therapy DOES show great promise, but it’s essential to approach any new treatment with informed caution. Recent breakthroughs, including a case where a patient’s diabetes was effectively cured through stem cell-derived islet transplantation, offer hope for the future. For now, stem cell therapy is viewed as a potential way to significantly improve diabetes management and quality of life for some patients.”

Links: (T1) https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/03/260302030648.htm#:~:text=Researchers%20are%20developing%20a%20two,protect%20them%20from%20autoimmune%20attack;
(T2) https://stemcellmedicalcenter.com/treatments/endocrine-metabolic-diabetic/diabetes-type-2-can-stem-cells-succeed-where-traditional-treatments-fail/#:~:text=In%20a%20groundbreaking%20case%20reported,Generating%20functional%20pancreatic%20islet%20cells

Image: https://asploro.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Diabetes-Research_Open-Access.jpg

GUY’S GOTTA TALK ABOUT…TYPE 2 DIABETES #37B: Diabetes T2 Is LESS Embarrassing Than Being OVERWEIGHT (aka Being FAT!)

I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes on September 29, 2022.

While people are happy to talk about their experiences with diabetes, I WASN’T comfortable with talking about diabetes. My wife is Type 2, as are several friends of ours. The “other Type” of diabetes was what caused the death of my Best Man a year after my wife and I got married. He was diagnosed with diabetes when he was a kid. It was called Juvenile Diabetes then. Today it’s Type 1. Since then, I haven’t WANTED to talk about diabetes at all. But…for my own education and maybe helping someone else, and not one to shut up for any known reason, I’m reopening my blog rather than starting a new one. I MAY take a pause and write about Breast Cancer or Alzheimer’s as medical headlines dictate; but this time I’m going to drag anyone along who wants to join my HIGHLY RELUCTANT journey toward better understanding of my life with Type 2 Diabetes. You’re Welcome to join me!

FOR THE NEXT SEVERAL POSTS, I’M GOING TO DRAW FROM THIS GUIDE:
https://diabetes.org/health-wellness/weight-management

So, the thing here is HOW DO I LOSE WEIGHT while being Type 2?

PART of the problem, is that I have NEVER been able to lose weight on purpose. I’m pretty sure there’s this psychological trigger that the moment I tell myself I’m not going to overeat, going to eat the “right things”, or that I HAVE to lose weight, the “C’mon! I DARE YOU TO MAKE ME!!!!” reflex kicks in.

What does the RESEARCH say about losing weight when you’re Type 2? I’m going to start at the beginning – NOT FOR YOU, but for me. (You can ride along if you’d like to!)

Get back to basics. The key to weight loss for most people is simply finding the right combination of exercise, healthy foods and portion control. No fad diet required.

While I’m not GREAT yet, I have made a solid start (for the past 3 years) with increasing my exercise. I LOVE biking. That wasn’t hard to start doing more often! However, I learned to LOATHE putting my bike on a stand in the basement or in the “spare room” and pedaling while GOING NOWHERE! I even tried reading while biking, and while I did that for a while, ultimately, I came to hate that as well. So, I’ll bike during the season.

But we live in Minnesota. Weather is entirely…unique. For example, it started snowing a few hours ago. We’ve got about four or five inches. It will CONTINUE all night. It will also continue all day tomorrow. AND, the wind will begin to whip it around at blizzard speeds. Virtually EVERYTHING will be shut down tomorrow until it blows itself out and we dig our various selves out, then continue to snow sporadically until next Friday, encouraging further forays with the shovel and snowblower.

At that point, the daytime temperature will be 60 degrees F.

At that point, I will have walked several MILES while blowing snow (and hauling, digging, throwing, and otherwise abusing snow whilst muttering dark threats to move to Florida or Hawaii. But walking for “exercise”? I hated that. But I created a routine for myself: I walk down the steps with my “step tracker” turned on, walk toward Palmer Lake Park Reserve (a TEENY urban slice of near-inner-city, that was entirely undevelopable because it’s a frequently overflowing SWAMP (also politely called a “marshland” at the end of the street), then along a sidewalk, slightly uphill to the street separating the neighborhood from a cemetery.

I turn around, follow the reverse path home, and when I arrive on my doorstep, I have walked 1.06 mile. On purpose and aiming for every other day when it’s WINTER out – and it’s enough that I willingly go out when it’s sub-zero, and without a care when it’s merely below freezing.

So, I’m exercising. A good friend of mine has suggested methods of dealing with sore hips (I AM almost 69!) that I’ve started doing…

Anyway, that’s it for now! Later.

Source: https://diabetes.org/health-wellness/weight-management
Image: https://diabetes.org/sites/default/files/styles/card_container_3_column_392w_2x/public/2023-09/exercise-type-1-card.jpg.webp?itok=6Autlf4i

GUY’S GOTTA TALK ABOUT…TYPE 2 DIABETES #39B: A MONTH After Switching To Ozempic Every OTHER Week

For the first time since I started this blog eleven years ago, it’s going to be about me. I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes two weeks ago. While people are happy to talk about their experiences with diabetes, I WASN’T comfortable with talking about diabetes. My wife is Type 2, as are several friends of ours. The “other Type” of diabetes was what caused the death of my Best Man a year after my wife and I got married. He was diagnosed with diabetes when he was a kid. It was called Juvenile Diabetes then. Today it’s Type 1. Since then, I haven’t WANTED to talk about diabetes at all. But…for my own education and maybe helping someone else, and not one to shut up for any known reason, I’m reopening my blog rather than starting a new one. I MAY take a pause and write about Breast Cancer or Alzheimer’s as medical headlines dictate; but this time I’m going to drag anyone along who wants to join my HIGHLY RELUCTANT journey toward better understanding of my life with Type 2 Diabetes. You’re Welcome to join me!

[There’s no evidence for this (yet?), but I have ZERO doubt that the makers of O, M, and all the others are preparing a vigorous smear campaign for studies like these.]

I’m writing to say that my own experience of reducing my Ozempic injections to once every other Sunday (my day for injections) supports the study linked below.

From the study, “In a small new study, most people who switched from weekly to every-other-week GLP-1 dosing maintained their weight loss and metabolic health improvements. [A fraction of the people regained weight and needed to return to weekly injections — suggesting close monitoring is important when reducing dose frequency.] While I have NOT regained weight and have NOT returned to a weekly dose. People who want to reduce their dose or space out GLP-1 injections should always consult their provider first.”

I talked with my doctor before getting off Ozempic on January 24, 2026, he supported my move, and with his concurrence, I stopped taking it every week.

I could share the actual data with you, but what you would see is NOT a miraculous return to the response of a person who is NOT insulin resistant – but you WOULD see someone who works to exercise regularly, watches both WHAT he eats and HOW MUCH he eats.

What you will NOT see is a man who has become acetic – only eating salads, twigs, single bites of fat-free yogurt (I have a cup of fat-free or low-fat yogurt a week and a cup of either fat-free or low-fat cottage cheese a week. These dairy products are mixed with (mostly) whatever fresh fruit is available at the grocery store (like raspberries, blackberries, apples, pears, and strawberries) mixed with a cup of either cottage cheese OR yogurt, and sweetened with Splenda – NOT to “ward off the effects of Ozempic”, but because I need to eat that amount of calcium twice a week so I don’t get cramps in my calves!

I confess that I DO have the occasional Dairy Queen PB Parfait or some scoops of ice cream during the week. I also walk a straight mile (ie – I have a route that I’ve clocked and know exactly how long and how far I go when I walk from our house to a nearby cemetery.); then add in whatever else my cell phone’s step counter has recorded. I’ll confess also that I am NOT religious about how much I walk…

My OTHER faith, “Minnesota Winter Weather Variation” has grounded me more than once. OTOH, I walked once day when the air temperature was -7F and the windchill gave the air a “feels like/ability to freeze skin” temperature of -36F (of course, that’s more to prove that I am still, indeed a Minnesotan)! I also now park as far out as I can in the grocery store or Target or church parking lot and walk into the building – no matter the temperature.

So…I did in fact reduce my use of Ozempic from weekly to bi-weekly. My starting physiological data are as follows:

2/24/2023 BP:155/180 Weight: 253.8 Blood Glucose: 189
9/7/2025 STARTED OZEMPIC BP:122/75 Weight: 241.2 Blood Glucose: 171
2/25/2026 BP: 120/75 Weight: 230.6 Blood Glucose: 145

Data indicates that when I DON’T walk, my BP and Glucose are higher. Weight can’t be measured as a “daily thing”, rather as a range. For example when I was originally diagnosed with Type2, I weighed 260.8 in April of 2023. Exercise and watching what I ate DID have an effect on my health. Ozempic initially help me break a barrier.

Because I’ve lately been drifting into the high 220’s with my Winter regimen, I’m going to work to push it lower when I take to my bike this Summer. We originally bought our house because it was adjacent to a park that is connected to biking/walking trails stretching from northern Minnesota, west to the Great Plains (North and South Dakota), south to Rochester and some go East into Wisconsin. I can literally ride the entire state and slices of three others and with the right permits, north into Canada!

I LOVE biking, and it’s stayed with me since I was a teenager and was biking to get away from my “sports-obsessed-family” – of course three activities I loved (biking, swimming, and camping) weren’t “sports-enough” for them…and, “Yes, you DO sense a bit of bitterness in my tone!” At any rate, I’m looking forward to losing a few more pounds (my recent A1c dropped to 6.2 about a month ago!), and seeing my daily blood sugars more often in the 140s rather than the 150s.

I’ll keep you posted! Have a great week!

Source: https://www.everydayhealth.com/weight-management/can-taking-glp-1-drug-every-other-week-help-you-keep-weight-off/ ; https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11885104/ Image: https://aeroflowdiabetes.com/media/wysiwyg/diabetes-guide-booklet-aeroflow-diabetes.jpg

DIABETES RESEARCH RIGHT NOW! #37A: The Stigma of Being Diagnosed with Type 2 (or even Type 1!) Diabetes

From the first moment I discovered I had been diagnosed with DIABETES, I joined a HUGE “club” that has been rapidly expanding since it stopped being a death sentence in the early 20th Century. Currently, there are about HALF A BILLION PEOPLE who have Type 2 Diabetes. For the past 3500 years – dating back to Ancient Egypt – people have suffered from diabetes. Well, I’m one of them now… Not one to shut up for any known reason, I added a section to this blog…Every month, I’ll be highlighting Diabetes research that is going on RIGHT NOW! Harvested from different websites, journals and podcasts, I’ll translate them into understandable English and share them with you. Today: Diabetes Technology: Standards of Care in Diabetes—2026.

Being a Type 2 diabetic sometimes bugs me.

I wonder how I could have screwed up so much in my life that I wrecked my body so badly, it broke! Turns out, I’m not the only one who carried the stigma of being diabetic: “Diabetic Stigma is defined as negative attitudes, judgment, discrimination, or prejudice against someone because they have diabetes. It comes from the false idea that people with diabetes made unhealthy food and lifestyle choices, which resulted in their diagnosis. These false beliefs don't consider key factors that can cause diabetes, such as family medical history. They also don't factor in social determinants of health, which are the conditions where people grow, work, live and age. Diabetes stigma can particularly affect people with overweight or obesity. More than half of people with diabetes report that they have experienced stigma. Diabetes stigma can exist anywhere: in the family, school, workplace, and even in health care settings. Diabetes stigma can be experienced internally or externally. Internal stigma is a belief that a person with diabetes has about themselves. It can include feelings of self-blame, shame, and guilt. External stigma is blame and judgment that comes from other people and society. It can include awkward or mean looks, rejection, exclusion, and difficulty maintaining relationships and friendships.”

The word “stigma” derives from the Latin word, “stigmata”. A stigmata was literally religiously produced spots on the skin. At one time, claims were made bearing the stigma was a holy sign of God.

That’s not what it means any more: stigma: “a mark of disgrace associated with a particular circumstance, quality, or person.”

While I learned as a kid, I can’t control what people THINK about me, I CAN control what I think about myself.

“Technology is rapidly changing, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach to technology use in people with diabetes. Insurance coverage can lag behind device availability, people’s interest in devices and willingness for adoption can vary, and health care teams may have challenges in keeping up with newly released technology. An American Diabetes Association resource, which can be accessed at Link to Diabetes Technology Guidediabetes.org/living-with-diabetes/treatment-care/diabetes-technology-guide, can help health care professionals and people with diabetes make decisions on the initial choice of device(s). Other choices including device manufacturers, can help people troubleshoot when difficulties arise.”

When I first read this last year, I pretty much skipped over it because it seemed OBVIOUS that these would all be things providers should be doing to help manage Type 2 diabetes. I had also started thinking about the stigma I carried. Like it says above, I was working with a load of self-imposed self-dislike; and even though I was a science teacher, I still couldn’t get around what I thought of myself!

So, what do I do?

I took one step two weeks ago: I talked to my doctor about keeping up on Ozempic; by changing the frequency to every TWO weeks. I’ll be taking my shot tomorrow, and have discovered that walking is going to be IMPORTANT, MAYBE EVEN VITAL, to keeping my blood sugars down.

It sure has altered what I think of myself. I don’t feel so helpless any more…

I’ll keep you posted!

Links: https://www.cdc.gov/diabetes/articles/diabetes-stigma.html ; https://www.everydayhealth.com/weight-management/can-taking-glp-1-drug-every-other-week-help-you-keep-weight-off/#:~:text=More%20Than%203%20Out%20of,same%20after%20the%20reduced%20dosing. 

Image: https://asploro.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Diabetes-Research_Open-Access.jpg

GUY’S GOTTA TALK ABOUT…TYPE 2 DIABETES #39: CONSIDERING Going OFF Ozempic

For the first time since I started this blog eleven years ago, it’s going to be about me. I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes two weeks ago. While people are happy to talk about their experiences with diabetes, I WASN’T comfortable with talking about diabetes. My wife is Type 2, as are several friends of ours. The “other Type” of diabetes was what caused the death of my Best Man a year after my wife and I got married. He was diagnosed with diabetes when he was a kid. It was called Juvenile Diabetes then. Today it’s Type 1. Since then, I haven’t WANTED to talk about diabetes at all. But…for my own education and maybe helping someone else, and not one to shut up for any known reason, I’m reopening my blog rather than starting a new one. I MAY take a pause and write about Breast Cancer or Alzheimer’s as medical headlines dictate; but this time I’m going to drag anyone along who wants to join my HIGHLY RELUCTANT journey toward better understanding of my life with Type 2 Diabetes. You’re Welcome to join me!

Yep. Oh, BTW – I’m not taking Ozempic so I can keep eating myself into a coma instead of learning how to exercise and eat healthier stuff in moderation! I’m taking it to help lower both my daily blood sugars and my A1c: my weight HAS dropped 20 pounds since I started taking Ozempic BUT, the biggest change has been my A1c from 8.0 in April of 2025 to 6.8 in October 2025! MAJOR CHANGE! and average blood sugars dropping from 238 in April 2025 to an average of 138 this week! Again, a MAJOR CHANGE and a healthier person! I’d love to stay on Ozempic forever. The injections – which was admittedly my biggest concern before starting it (including a test run using Rybelsus, which is an oral form of Semaglutide (the active ingredient of Ozempic injected) – but the cost was horrendous AND THE PILLS WERE SO BITTER (bitter like, oh, say, I just about barfed every time I took one. I had to play around with placing the monstrosity carefully on the back of my tongue with a glass of water at hand to wash it down INSTANTLY.

I finally decided that was enough of that. I would make a plan to go OFF Ozempic. Stop using it. NOT cold turkey...but gradually with my doctor’s help.

That’s exactly what it sounds like. I’m going to quit Ozempic. But WHY??? You might ask. The problem is THE COST. Currently, even WITH insurance, it will cost me between $732 - $800 for a three month supply of Ozempic semaglutide. As there are 12 months a year, that means I’ll be shelling out…for the rest of my life…between $2928 to $3200 each year.

But is it worth it?

Well…I haven’t just been laying around, stuffing my face, and shoot my belly full of Ozempic. It’s full-on Winter here in Minnesota, so it’s just a given that I can’t get out and walk on some days. I TRIED setting my bike up on a stand and pedaling during the Winter, but that was just plain BORING, even when I read. It’s like…I ride my bike to get somewhere. Even if it’s just a few miles around the same lake as I usually ride ride around – but here, the weather can change in a matter of days. Winter officially begins on December twenty-something every year. BUT – some First Days of Winter are 60 degree. Others are 60 inches of snow, windy, and a wind-chill of ten-below-ZERO (which, I might remind you is 32 degrees BELOW FREEZING – even Minnesotans regard wind-chills (also know stupidly as “feels like”) that cold as DANGEROUS.

At any rate, I found I LOATHED pedaling indoors for 30-60 minutes incredibly BORING. So – I walk during the winter and bike as soon as the ice is off the streets and sidewalks. Then I bike between 5 and 20 miles a week. THAT’S when I feel best. BUT…I have to come up with a routine for something to DO on days it’s snowing, sleeting, raining, tornado-ing, or whatever.

Eating? Dang…my biggest weakness. I know what I SHOULD be eating (“You mean a peanut buster parfait isn’t the same as drinking a glass of milk, eating a handful of peanuts, and eating a few dark chocolate chips???” or “You mean an Arby’s Double Beef Burger isn’t the same as eating lean been slices with carrots and spinach dip? It’s WORSE?”

So, here I am. We’ll see why my doctor says soon enough and I’ll keep you in the loop about what is going on!

Source: https://www.bursor.com/what-happens-when-you-stop-taking-ozempic/ ; https://www.goldfieldsfamilymedical.com.au/coming-off-ozempic/ ; https://www.aarp.org/medicare/faq/does-medicare-cover-ozempic-weight-loss-drugs/#:~:text=But%20unless%20you're%20overweight,unless%20the%20program%20is%20extended.

Image: https://www.medsengage.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Type-2-Diabetes-Management.jpg