Posted by Marina on November 02, 1998 at 17:30:48:
In Reply to: Re: Ann Landers posted by Jeffb1@usa.net on November 02, 1998 at 16:04:45:
I couldn't agree more. This is the letter I wrote last night although I have to say I don't have much faith in Ms. Landers and I don't really see the point in writing to her (or her employees) but I did it anyway.
Ann Landers
Chicago Tribune
435 North Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60611
Dear Ann Landers,
What would you think if you heard a person with AIDS say that their disease was no big deal? What would you think if a person with cancer stated that their condition and its progression was all their fault or if a woman with breast cancer said it was the best thing that ever happened to her? You probably would take issue with each and every person and set them straight to the best of your ability. Yes, you might do that but one thing you probably wouldn’t even think of would be to agree with them. Yet there is one disease where it is expected of the victims to blame themselves. There is one disease where the persons afflicted often feel responsible, even embarrassed about and as such the victims of this disease do indeed say outlandish statements and nobody takes issue with them. In fact, they often agree with them! This disease kills close to 190,000 Americans every year and that’s just the number that gets reported. This disease is a non-reportable disease so the actual number is probably much higher. This disease costs the U.S. government $138 billion dollars yearly just to keep up with medical costs (both direct and indirect). It’s progression leads to catastrophic consequences such as blindness (retinopathy), kidney failure (nephropathy), stroke, heart and vascular disease, nerve disease leading to amputations (neuropathy) and a host of other horrors down the road. What is this disease? DIABETES.
Type I diabetes is an autoimmune disease which occurs when a person’s own immune system attacks and destroys the glucose monitoring and insulin producing beta cells of the pancreas. How do I know about diabetes? My 8 year old son was diagnosed at the age of 4. He is not obese, he is not inactive, he is not lazy nor does he have poor eating habits. My son did nothing wrong but even at the tender age of 4 when I told him this; he was so grateful to hear it. Even at the age of 4, he-- like many diabetics had thought he was responsible for his condition. Multiple Sclerosis and Rheumatoid Arthritis are also autoimmune diseases. Do victims of these diseases get blamed for their condition or do they blame themselves? Is their condition not seen as a serious disease? No on both counts but for diabetes, there is a free-for-all to blame the diabetic and make them feel responsible. When complications take hold—well we all know that it’s their own fault...right? Wrong.
Because of the destruction of these beta cells, a system of blood tests and exogenous insulin (either through a pump or by multiple injections) must be put into place on a daily basis. Every bit of food that is eaten must be measured in terms of carbohydrate in order to balance the amount of insulin given. Exercise can skew blood sugar so any activity out of the norm must be accounted for and the insulin adjusted accordingly. High blood sugar can result in the complications I just mentioned; low blood sugar can result in disorientation, brain damage and even sudden death. It is a grueling and frustrating tightrope walk that never ends (can you even imagine being on that rope?). To say it is difficult is an understatement. I’m telling you that it is impossible to consistently achieve normal blood sugars on a 24 hour basis 7 days a week, 365 days a year for a lifetime.
From what I’ve just told you about diabetes you would think that the NIH would be trying it’s best to cure this disease but nothing could be further from the truth. Diabetes is not a priority at the NIH and one of the reasons is simply because it’s victims are not as vocal as those of other diseases. Diabetics are too busy brushing off their illness as either a Godsend or a trivial matter not worthy of even mentioning. They are too busy being embarrassed about it to tell the truth. As a result, the truth becomes obscured, even obliterated with condescending rhetoric.
What is the truth? The truth is that diabetes kills. The truth is that diabetes is a very big deal both in terms of human suffering, death and in terms of economics. The truth is that diabetes needs to be cured but that won’t happen until the beta cells that were destroyed are transplanted and protected from another immune system attack but alas, the truth is that the NIH has grossly under-funded beta cell research as a cure for diabetes. The truth is that millions of Americans need to be made aware of diabetes and its consequences so that our government will finally get the message and take this disease seriously and CURE IT.
Sincerely,
Marina Krefft
http://members.tripod.com/~Oceanside/why.htm