When Ashley Jarvis found out she had diabetes, not even her dog Tequila could calm her down.
"I was really scared because I had to give myself shots," Ashley Jarvis, a diabetic, told Action News.
Her family was full of questions. Let's put your knowledge to the test. One out of three people with diabetes experience complications. What are they at risk for? Is it blindness, heart attack, stroke, or gum disease? The answer? All of these. It's the leading cause of blindness in adults and increases your risk of gum disease. Those with diabetes are also twice as likely to have heart disease or stroke. And heart disease is the number one killer of those with diabetes.
True or false, eating too much sugar causes diabetes? False. While being overweight is a risk factor for type 2, it doesn't matter where the calories come from. Type 1 is genetic.
"A lot of families are on guilt trips when they first come to see me because they think that they've given their little child diabetes because they gave them one too many fruit juices. That is not true," Pediatric endocrinologist, Dr. Deidre McSweeney-Tyson from Bon Secours St. Mary's hospital told Action News.
True or false: type 1 diabetes skips generations? False.
"In fact the way the genetics work especially if the father has diabetes there is a much larger chance that one of his children will get diabetes, Dr. McSweeney-Tyson added.
Finally true or false: only overweight people develop type 2 diabetes? False.
"But the take home message is, a lot of type 2 diabetes can be prevented by changing one's lifestyle and not gaining weight Dr. McSweeney-Tyson concluded.
Simple changes that could save your life.
More than 90 percent of people diagnosed with diabetes have type-2. Two out of three people with diabetes die of heart disease or stroke.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
American Diabetes Association
(800) 342-2383
