There is an important bit of health news out of the UK for patients and doctors alike. The conclusion is that people diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes need more help than they may be given. For patients, it means ensuring that you get adequate doctors’ health advice — lasting advice.
Essentially, UK researchers found that new diabetics require ongoing advice from physicians over many years. That stands in opposition to what happens regularly: a one-off session where someone is diagnosed. With diabetes being so common now, a lack of ongoing doctor’s advice is routine.
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There is some proof that a single program for people with newly diagnosed Type 2 diabetes can lead to sustained improvements at three years. But just one session leads to no sustained difference in biomedical or lifestyle outcomes. This is a big study, published as it is in the “British Medical Journal.”
The team analyzed three-year data on 731 patients from more than 200 clinics. Those newly diagnosed received either a one-day self-management education program (Diabetes Education and Self Management for Ongoing and Newly Diagnosed or “DESMOND”) or the usual physician care. The results show that there are significant benefits in a long-lasting treatment and that they can be sustained for three years.
The study shows that patients need care planning and ongoing structured education rather than a one-off program. This is critical to see continued benefits with regard to lifestyle and diabetes management.
The authors believe that the DESMOND program can help with the psychological impact of diabetes, and the disease’s effects on lifestyle. Further studies will be needed to determine just how essential ongoing doctors’ advice is in gaining better control over blood glucose levels.
So, if you have recently been diagnosed with diabetes, here is what you need to begin. You need a physician who either delivers or refers you to a structured education program with a healthcare team. This way you have the tools you need to manage diabetes properly. It helps you stay on track, and you know you are getting professional advice. Battling diabetes to a large extent is about managing your own behaviors. It is like a long-lasting diet or program to shed pounds. You have to be conscious and follow it, or else diabetes can spin out of control.