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one for the diabetes

noblehead

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Type 1
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Disrespectful people
Hi everyone,

Been watching the excellent series 'The Restaurant' on the BBC. Last night was the final and both remaining couples had to cook and serve a 5-course meal to the owners and guests of a very fine country house. The lord and lady of the house had a guest list of people mainly from the same social circle.

Anyway, to round the evening off they ate a fancy, well presented piece of chocolate which did look rather sweet. Whilst tucking in, one of the guest said in a loud voice ''this one's for the diabetes'', and a loud chuckle could be heard from around the table. Now I don't know whether or not the person in question had diabetes or not, but it made my blood boil just the same! :evil:

I looked at my wife, and she could see that I was annoyed (must have seen the steam coming out of my ears) and she said that the bbc should have removed that comment from the final show. As I say, can't say for sure if he had diabetes or not, either way it is not a condition to make fun of for the sake of a few cheap laughs. Wish I had been there, I would have stuck his fat, smug face into the chocolate! (Mods, please remove this last sentence should you see fit)

Rant over

Nigel

Nigel.
I can't. I always get complained about !! Anyway we agree with the sentiment...... :twisted:
Ken.
 
Now before continuing, let me make it clear that I am not bumping this post back to the top of the forum cause nobody replied :cry: I promise!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, I think that you will probably realise in a minute that I am not found of people mocking or making light of a life-long condition such as diabetes. My wife has been watching a episode of Come Dine With Me on Channel 4, she loves the programme and I do watch it myself occasionally. One of contestants on his way back home in the taxi was commenting on the food prior to marking, and he described the dessert as 'diabetes in a cup' due to it being very sweet, needless to say this got my back up once again. :evil:

Why do people feel the need to make such crass comments on a condition that they know little about, is it any wonder that people's knowledge and perception of diabetes is somewhat lacking and distorted. I am away now to put my head in a cold bucket of water! :shock:

Nigel
 
My wife reported an episode of a detective series where the chief collapsed with a serious diabetic condition acronymmed HONK. The hospital brought him round, & he set off on a 4 hour drive.

Utterly irresponsible :twisted:
 
Ian,

I had to look that one up, wasn't sure what HONK was, good old google!

Agree, that wouldn't happen in real life, at least I hope not........... :roll:

Nigel
 
Unless anyone has knowledge of diabetes then how much are they expected to know about it? The media is entertaining people with these programmes and it is not factual. I am sure that people with other illnesses have seen discrepancies in programmes. Would you know if something pertaining to cancer or mental illness was not correct?
Educating the public about all chronic illnesses would be a step in the right direction. There are adverts about understanding dementia, stopping smoking and drink awareness going on at the moment so perhaps we need to rally round and ask the Government and their advisers for more education for the general public to understand diabetes as opposed to the very misleading Change4Life which, in the beginning, lumped all diabetics together as one disease.
 
It is fashionable at the moment to mock overweight people and blame them for their "gluttony and sloth" which got them there.
The papers are regularly announcing that we have an "epidemic of obesity" which will lead to life threatening conditions such as diabetes.
The link to " diabetes is caused by sloth and gluttony." is obvious
Since Sloth and Gluttony are numbered among the seven deadly sins, so by extrapolation,diabetes is a sin.Being self-inflicted. there's no reason to hold back on mocking someone with diabetes, where you wouldn't do it to a victim of cancer( even if it's self inflicted by virtue of smoking :shock: .)
Let's not worry about accuracy of information. It doesn't matter that you can only have an epidemic of a contagious disease.
There's nothing like feeling superior to someone else.
Ie
I'm slim, so I'm worth more than you.
It all speaks of an unhealthy society.
Primary school children judge their classmates on looks and not on how they behave.
We have a celebrity who is feted on all the TV channels,who became famous by exposing her surgically enhanced breasts in the newpapers. who as far as I can tell from the headlines that greet me on magazine fronts by the supermarket entry. Has children by 2 different men, has divorced the husband who accepted a child that wasn't his and is being seen in holiday resorts with another man who she's inflicted on her poor children.
With this kind of role model
what do we expect of society? Sense?, thoughtfulness? understanding? kindness or even good manners?
 
Catherine,

I concur with you about the mis-information aspect and also the point you make about knowing what is factual/not factual on our tv screens. The trouble is with drama's, more so medical drama is that the researchers and advisers to the programme are either inept at writing story lines about diabetes in general, possibly due to limited knowledge on the subject matter, or they are deliberately twisting a storyline to create a more gripping drama for the viewers.

In reality programmes on the other hand, where people make off the cup remarks about conditions they know little of, it would be sensible for the editor to remove these comments from the programme. It is very true that you only have a in-depth knowledge of a illness/condition when either you or someone close to you is diagnosed.

Nigel
 
Loving your post Nigel! My father in law has been diagnosed with some kind of mysterious illness which could be diabetes or could be insulin resitance or could be neither, we just can't tell (he lives a million miles away and we have to rely on his feedback from him, rather than actually hearing it from the horses mouth, horse being the Doc). Anyhoo, I'm digressing, my point is that last time he came to stay, we had dinner and I served ice cream for dessert (mainly as a treat for the children!) and I offered out of politeness and was told 'oh ok, won't do my diabetes much good though!' followed by a naughty chuckle as he helped himself to 3 spoonfuls! My other half had the good sense to ask me to 'fetch his glasses/drink/toothbrush' from another room as he could see my blood visibly boiling!! People can be ignorant and thoughtless. Don't get me wrong, my father in law and I get on great but when it comes to anything medical, we lock horns as he is so offensive and tells me he'couldn't be doing with all that faffing' when I check BG, count carbs, inject or whatever. It's ignorance, pure and simple!

On a side note, there is a fab website I have found which sells tshirts which say 'Peace. Love. Insulin' which I have ordered for all my family to wear, whether they like it or not, in order to increase awareness out there! :lol:
 
Debloubed,

I don't know...........in-laws eh! Have to let us know how you get on with the family wearing the t-shirts, I would get told to stick them where the sun don't shine! :lol:

Nigel
 
ahhh, I know my Mum will wear one, she can be relied upon to get everything out of proportion as well as raise awareness!! :lol:
 

Hana,

It is not often that I feel the urge to agree and respond to one of your postings, but on this occasion you have excelled yourself with the above. It is pretty much how we all feel about how we are judged by society, and the so-called role models who frequent the front pages of newspapers and magazines........................well the less said the better! :roll:

Educating the masses to have a more compassionate view of illness and long-term condition is a imposible task to undertake, there will always be those that think that our ill's are our own doing.

Regards

Nigel
 
Waterloo Road handled the dilemma of a girl who was going DKA because she wanted to lose weight. It was very sensitively portrayed and the information regarding DKA was extremely accurate. Sometimes, the media allow remarks like "diabetes in a cup" to get through, but sometimes they do get it right. The Waterloo Road episode raised awareness of DKA and the more extreme side of diabetes. A pat on the back from the BBC from me.
 
that was a good episode of Waterloo road, my daughter and I watched transfixed! but check this out from the WR website:

''Steph quietly investigates Tasha’s student file to discover she is type one diabetic and suddenly the symptoms: weakness, irritability and bad vision all make sense – Tasha is experiencing a hypo… she’s proved right when the weakened Tasha collapses in the corridor. Steph calls the school nurse and they administer insulin as a shocked Danielle and Aleesha look on.''

So close Aunty beeb, yet so far!! :lol:
 

Lets just pray that somebody watching this show doesn't follows the example set in this episode, what ever happened to storylines being researched thoroughly and factually portrayed.

Nigel
 
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