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Deadly diabetes

The key to prevention is a smart lifestyle

Published on Monday, Dec 17, 2007

At a congressional hearing four years ago, Richard Carmona, then the U.S. surgeon general, spoke about a health crisis that affected ''every state, every city, every community and every school across our great nation.'' The crisis was obesity, which, he said, was ''the fastest-growing cause of disease and death in America.''

Diabetes is one of those diseases closely associated with obesity. It is no accident the rate of diabetes (and other chronic ailments such as hypertension and heart disease) tracks with the obesity crisis. More than 620,000 Ohioans have a diabetes diagnosis. Since 2000, the incidence of the disease has shot up 29.5 percent in Summit County and an alarming 58.6 percent in Mahoning County.

As the fifth-leading cause of death in the state, diabetes exacts a heavy toll on health and finances, both personal and public. Roughly 8 percent ($612 million) of the state's total Medicaid spending in 2000 went to patients with diabetes and related complications, a group accounting for less than 3 percent of the Medicaid population, according to an Ohio Department of Health report.

Because of the combination of poor eating habits, lack of exercise and better health care, more Americans are living with (and suffering) one or more chronic diseases. Treating these ailments is not inexpensive. The Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, a national health-care advocacy group that recently launched an Ohio chapter, reports that 75 percent of the $2 trillion spent on health care in America in 2005 went toward treating chronic disease.

That is a compelling argument for a comprehensive strategy to prevent or delay the onset of disease. The Catalyst to Better Diabetes Care Act, legislation proposed last week by Sen. Sherrod Brown, is a promising initiative, with its call for a national plan to improve screening, outreach programs, diabetes education and data collection. In many cases, chronic disease is preventable — if we act smartly.

At a congressional hearing four years ago, Richard Carmona, then the U.S. surgeon general, spoke about a health crisis that affected ''every state, every city, every community and every school across our great nation.'' The crisis was obesity, which, he said, was ''the fastest-growing cause of disease and death in America.''

Get the full article here.


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