Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Monday, April 26, 2010
Like oil and vinegar..we just don't mix
Spring is here and in most places it already feels like summer. Spring is probably one of my favorite seasons of the year. All the birds starting singing (including the mocking bird that wakes me up every morning), flowers start to bloom, and the grass starts to grow and change colors.
Sounds perfect right? Well with Spring comes weeds and wildflowers, and poison. Neighbors come out of their homes and start cleaning up their properties. They start burning brush and God knows what else.
Last week two of our neighbors were burning. I woke up one morning with a scratchy throat and what I thought might be a bug bite. When I looked in the mirror I was covered in rashes. From past experiences I automatically knew what it was...poison ivy!
Nature and I just don't mix very well, and neither does poison ivy and diabetes. Since Type 1 is an autoimmune disease, my body really had a hard time fighting the attack that was happening to me. My blood sugar started to rise and I started filling ill.
On Saturday I just couldn't take it anymore. My throat was so itchy and swollen and my eyes were burning. My skin was beginning to look like I had been through a fire. It was red, rashy, and blistered. Plan one, get to the doctors quick...if their was one open, backup plan...emergency room.
Luckily for me our local express care is open 7 days a week. When the doctor saw me she immediately knew that I was having an allergic reaction. She took a scope and looked in my throat and it was blistered. My stomach was on fire and I had a weird itching sensation deep inside of me. Due to the smoke from the burning brush that I inhaled, the poison ivy was deep inside me.
She administered a shot of predisone and prescribed me steroids. Now for most diabetics this is a no-no. In my case though it was my only choice. Both the predisone and the steroids cause my blood sugar to rise. I have to keep a tight watch on it and really control what I eat.
I am having some symptoms from the medicine, but I guess that is to be expected in my case. I am still itchy but I am able to get some relief from benadryl (and sleep I must add). The rash has not cleared up yet, but the blisters are starting to dry up so that is a plus! Right now it is just a constant battle with my blood sugar...but that is something that I am use to already.
I am still keeping up with my 365 project, although I must say there will probably not be many close ups for awhile :) School starts back in 16 days, and although I am a little scared I am also very excited. As far as Dr. Ramharrack goes, I'm still on strike although I have been keeping in touch via phone due to my new situation.
Happy Monday!
-Kimberlee
FYI- Did you know that the percentage of body fat that you contain needs to be under 25%? Anything over that puts you at high risk for heart disease, metabolic disease such as type 2 diabetes, and obesity. Something as simple as 30 minutes of cardio five days a week will lower your body fat percentage and keep you healthy and happy! So get out and walk a little, if it is to hot for you outside maybe try and turn your radio on and start dancing. If dancing isn't your thing...their is always house work and believe it or not vacuuming is a great way to get your heart pumping!
Sounds perfect right? Well with Spring comes weeds and wildflowers, and poison. Neighbors come out of their homes and start cleaning up their properties. They start burning brush and God knows what else.
Last week two of our neighbors were burning. I woke up one morning with a scratchy throat and what I thought might be a bug bite. When I looked in the mirror I was covered in rashes. From past experiences I automatically knew what it was...poison ivy!
Nature and I just don't mix very well, and neither does poison ivy and diabetes. Since Type 1 is an autoimmune disease, my body really had a hard time fighting the attack that was happening to me. My blood sugar started to rise and I started filling ill.
On Saturday I just couldn't take it anymore. My throat was so itchy and swollen and my eyes were burning. My skin was beginning to look like I had been through a fire. It was red, rashy, and blistered. Plan one, get to the doctors quick...if their was one open, backup plan...emergency room.
Luckily for me our local express care is open 7 days a week. When the doctor saw me she immediately knew that I was having an allergic reaction. She took a scope and looked in my throat and it was blistered. My stomach was on fire and I had a weird itching sensation deep inside of me. Due to the smoke from the burning brush that I inhaled, the poison ivy was deep inside me.
She administered a shot of predisone and prescribed me steroids. Now for most diabetics this is a no-no. In my case though it was my only choice. Both the predisone and the steroids cause my blood sugar to rise. I have to keep a tight watch on it and really control what I eat.
I am having some symptoms from the medicine, but I guess that is to be expected in my case. I am still itchy but I am able to get some relief from benadryl (and sleep I must add). The rash has not cleared up yet, but the blisters are starting to dry up so that is a plus! Right now it is just a constant battle with my blood sugar...but that is something that I am use to already.
I am still keeping up with my 365 project, although I must say there will probably not be many close ups for awhile :) School starts back in 16 days, and although I am a little scared I am also very excited. As far as Dr. Ramharrack goes, I'm still on strike although I have been keeping in touch via phone due to my new situation.
Happy Monday!
-Kimberlee
FYI- Did you know that the percentage of body fat that you contain needs to be under 25%? Anything over that puts you at high risk for heart disease, metabolic disease such as type 2 diabetes, and obesity. Something as simple as 30 minutes of cardio five days a week will lower your body fat percentage and keep you healthy and happy! So get out and walk a little, if it is to hot for you outside maybe try and turn your radio on and start dancing. If dancing isn't your thing...their is always house work and believe it or not vacuuming is a great way to get your heart pumping!
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Secret Garden 6:365
I was feeling a little more creative today...finally! My Saturday sucked though..boo! I'll explain in my blog on Monday. Happy Weekend everyone!
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Boots 3:365
I don't know why, but I have this song stuck in my head today "These boots are made for walking, so thats just will they'll do, because one of these day these boots are gonna walk all over you."
I kind of lost my inspiration today, so this is all I got. Maybe it will come back tomorrow :)
Spring chicks 2:365
Baby birds hatched right outside of my door yesterday morning. They are adorable. I took this picture while mommy bird was off hunting for food for her babies. The camera made a beeping noise and I think one of the babies must have thought it was her mother because it kept opening it's mouth when it heard the noise.
Mama and babies are doing great today and the chicks have been sleeping a lot. The mama comes and goes, I am sure she is hunting for them. I can't wait until they are old enough to start flying...what an awesome feeling that must be!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Sugar 101
I woke up this morning to some good news. They fellow I told you about yesterday FINALLY took my advice and went to the doctors. The not so good news is that his doctor diagnosed him with diabetic neuropathy. He is really down about it and unaware of the facts. I emailed him this morning with some words of encouragement.
Diabetic neuropathy is a very common diabetic complication. It is when the nerves are damaged by too much sugar in the blood (Hyperglycemia). The only treatment is to get tight control over your blood sugar levels. Most of the time it is not reversible, although I have heard of some cases where the diabetic got such good control over his blood sugar levels that the nerve endings actually started to heal.
Who knew sugar could cause such a disaster! The fact is, too much sugar can really be dangerous for your health. Sugar has been known to feed cancer cells, trigger weight gain, and cause premature aging (are you listening ladies?).
Here are some crazy facts for you:
In 1700, the average person consumed 4 pounds of sugar per year.
In 1800, the average person consumed about 18 pounds of sugar per year.
In 1900, individual consumption increased to about 90 pounds of sugar per year.
In 2009, more than 50 percent of Americans consume one-half pound of sugar per day, that is an average of 180 pounds of sugar per year.
Now for a visual... Imagine that you are the grocery store and you saw someone pushing a cart with 36, 5 pound bags of sugar. You would look at them like they are crazy right? Now go look at yourself in the mirror because their is a huge chance that you consumed that whole shopping cart of sugar last year alone.
It is easy to become confused by the various sugars and sweeteners out there today, so here is a quick overview:
Dextrose, fructose and glucose are all monosaccharides, known as simple sugars. The primary difference between them is how your body metabolizes them. Glucose and dextrose are essentially the same sugar. However, food manufacturers usually use the term “dextrose” in their ingredient list.
The simple sugars can combine to form more complex sugars, like the disaccharide sucrose (table sugar), which is half glucose and half fructose.
High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is 55 percent fructose and 45 percent glucose.
Ethanol (drinking alcohol) is not a sugar, although beer and wine contain residual sugars and starches, in addition to alcohol.
Sugar alcohols like xylitol, glycerol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, and erythritol are neither sugars nor alcohols but are becoming increasingly popular as sweeteners. They are incompletely absorbed from your small intestine, for the most part, so they provide fewer calories than sugar but often cause problems with bloating, diarrhea and flatulence.
Sucralose (Splenda) is NOT a sugar, despite its sugar-like name and deceptive marketing slogan, “made from sugar.” It’s a chlorinated artificial sweetener in line with aspartame and saccharin, with detrimental health effects to match.
Agave syrup, falsely advertised as “natural,” is typically HIGHLY processed and is usually 80 percent fructose. The end product does not even remotely resemble the original agave plant.
Honey is about 53 percent fructose[2], but is completely natural in its raw form and has many health benefits when used in moderation, including as many antioxidants as spinach.
Stevia is a highly sweet herb derived from the leaf of the South American stevia plant, which is completely safe (in its natural form). Lo han (or luohanguo) is another natural sweetener, but derived from a fruit.
By now, you should have a nice sugar high :) Remember that buggy full of sugar today when you are sitting down at the table for a meal. Too much sugar is no good, no matter how sweet you are!!
Sweet and Sassy!
-Kimberlee
Diabetic neuropathy is a very common diabetic complication. It is when the nerves are damaged by too much sugar in the blood (Hyperglycemia). The only treatment is to get tight control over your blood sugar levels. Most of the time it is not reversible, although I have heard of some cases where the diabetic got such good control over his blood sugar levels that the nerve endings actually started to heal.
Who knew sugar could cause such a disaster! The fact is, too much sugar can really be dangerous for your health. Sugar has been known to feed cancer cells, trigger weight gain, and cause premature aging (are you listening ladies?).
Here are some crazy facts for you:
In 1700, the average person consumed 4 pounds of sugar per year.
In 1800, the average person consumed about 18 pounds of sugar per year.
In 1900, individual consumption increased to about 90 pounds of sugar per year.
In 2009, more than 50 percent of Americans consume one-half pound of sugar per day, that is an average of 180 pounds of sugar per year.
Now for a visual... Imagine that you are the grocery store and you saw someone pushing a cart with 36, 5 pound bags of sugar. You would look at them like they are crazy right? Now go look at yourself in the mirror because their is a huge chance that you consumed that whole shopping cart of sugar last year alone.
It is easy to become confused by the various sugars and sweeteners out there today, so here is a quick overview:
Dextrose, fructose and glucose are all monosaccharides, known as simple sugars. The primary difference between them is how your body metabolizes them. Glucose and dextrose are essentially the same sugar. However, food manufacturers usually use the term “dextrose” in their ingredient list.
The simple sugars can combine to form more complex sugars, like the disaccharide sucrose (table sugar), which is half glucose and half fructose.
High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is 55 percent fructose and 45 percent glucose.
Ethanol (drinking alcohol) is not a sugar, although beer and wine contain residual sugars and starches, in addition to alcohol.
Sugar alcohols like xylitol, glycerol, sorbitol, maltitol, mannitol, and erythritol are neither sugars nor alcohols but are becoming increasingly popular as sweeteners. They are incompletely absorbed from your small intestine, for the most part, so they provide fewer calories than sugar but often cause problems with bloating, diarrhea and flatulence.
Sucralose (Splenda) is NOT a sugar, despite its sugar-like name and deceptive marketing slogan, “made from sugar.” It’s a chlorinated artificial sweetener in line with aspartame and saccharin, with detrimental health effects to match.
Agave syrup, falsely advertised as “natural,” is typically HIGHLY processed and is usually 80 percent fructose. The end product does not even remotely resemble the original agave plant.
Honey is about 53 percent fructose[2], but is completely natural in its raw form and has many health benefits when used in moderation, including as many antioxidants as spinach.
Stevia is a highly sweet herb derived from the leaf of the South American stevia plant, which is completely safe (in its natural form). Lo han (or luohanguo) is another natural sweetener, but derived from a fruit.
By now, you should have a nice sugar high :) Remember that buggy full of sugar today when you are sitting down at the table for a meal. Too much sugar is no good, no matter how sweet you are!!
Sweet and Sassy!
-Kimberlee
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