Monday the 14th is World Diabetes Day and Thursday the 17th is the Great American Smokeout. What do these two things have in common? They can both wreak havoc on the human body!
The purpose of managing diabetes with lifestyle changes and medications is to avoid the devastating and sometimes deadly complications that can result from elevated blood glucose of prolonged duration. Smoking also causes deadly health problems, and, in fact, the same ones! Diabetes and smoking both contribute to poor circulation, heart disease, stroke, eye disease and kidney disease (and I’m sure nerve disease isn’t helped by smoking).
While the rate of cigarette smoking in adults without diabetes has declined over the past ten years, for those with diabetes it has stayed the same. In fact, adults with diabetes now smoke more than adults without. People with diabetes who smoke put themselves at a much higher risk for complications. Smoking is dangerous regardless, but if you have diabetes and you smoke, give yourself the gift of health this year and work toward quitting. Cigarette smoking can also contribute to type 2 diabetes, if you don’t already have it. Can you imagine what it does to the blood glucose of someone with diabetes?
Sorry to go all diabetes educator on you, but smoking and diabetes really is a deadly combination and it’s my job to let everyone know that. Especially during Diabetes Awareness Month!