CathyN
Well-Known Member
- Messages
- 248
- Location
- dorset
- Type of diabetes
- Type 2
- Treatment type
- Tablets (oral)
- Dislikes
- prejudice, racism, complacency, ignorance
It seems to me that the NHS would never advise a smoker to continue smoking ( i.e doing something that is a direct threat to their health ) until the effects are beginning to manifest.... a smokers cough, hardening of the arteries, bronchitis, emphysema, thrombosis, stroke, lung and throat cancer etc.etc. On the contrary, millions of pounds are spent on advertising to educate smokers about the effects of the habit - quite rightly, help is available ..... not sure, but I bet patches and gum are available on prescription and I think that is a wonderful thing.
Diabetics (especially Type 2 who are attempting to control with diet and exercise), however, who face equally terrifying complications - which are not due to a choice ( like smoking ) but because they have a condition - are left in a no man's land of wait and see. We are officially advised to continue to eat foods that will increase our chances of complications arising with no means provided to monitor our progress. Where are the health warnings for diabetics on packets of white sugar, white bread and pasta? And I don't mean traffic light labelling, I mean a dedicated diabetic advice panel ( not everyone is able to winkle out the detail on packets ). Where is the help for us in quitting foods that will lead us head long into high blood sugar readings and compromised well being??
If the NHS recognises that smokers need official help to control their addiction in order to minimise their risks of serious disease and premature death, why doesn't it recognise that diabetics need access to strips and meters in order to do the same??
It seems that the addiction to tobacco and quitting of smoking is given much higher importance than the arrest of a condition that is NOT a choice for the millions of people who have it - and it's shocking.
Diabetics (especially Type 2 who are attempting to control with diet and exercise), however, who face equally terrifying complications - which are not due to a choice ( like smoking ) but because they have a condition - are left in a no man's land of wait and see. We are officially advised to continue to eat foods that will increase our chances of complications arising with no means provided to monitor our progress. Where are the health warnings for diabetics on packets of white sugar, white bread and pasta? And I don't mean traffic light labelling, I mean a dedicated diabetic advice panel ( not everyone is able to winkle out the detail on packets ). Where is the help for us in quitting foods that will lead us head long into high blood sugar readings and compromised well being??
If the NHS recognises that smokers need official help to control their addiction in order to minimise their risks of serious disease and premature death, why doesn't it recognise that diabetics need access to strips and meters in order to do the same??
It seems that the addiction to tobacco and quitting of smoking is given much higher importance than the arrest of a condition that is NOT a choice for the millions of people who have it - and it's shocking.