Diabetes day gives illness public profile

Jul 1 2009 by Jonathan Geddes, Rutherglen Reformer

RESIDENTS had the chance to learn all about diabetes, as Rutherglen Health Centre held an information day about the condition.

There were a huge variety of stalls on offer, each of which explained all about different aspects of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.

The centre’s resident diabetic nurse, Debbie Halliday, felt there was many benefits to the day.

She explained: “We had a lot of people through the doors, and there was a lot of information made available.

“Diabetes can affect so many different parts of the body. People might know about how it can affect their feet or hands, but it can also cause complications with blood vessels.”

And Debbie believes the day’s success was partly down to the huge amount of different stalls offering information on the day.

“Having so many specialists in one place, means you can really ask all the questions you need.

“We had people from all the different blood testing meters there, and Diabetes UK had information on how alcohol can affect diabetes.

“We also had people from the Transplant Unit at the Royal Infirmary in Edinburgh who explained about the cell transplants they can perform on people who have lost their early warning signs for hypos (a hypo is when a diabetic’s blood sugars go too low, causing them to feel unwell) .

“There was lots of information available about insulin pumps, and all the new guidelines that go with them.”

Other stalls dealt with topics such as mental health, oral health and retinal screening, while dietitians were also in attendance.

One local, Anne Stevenson, has had Type 2 diabetes for nine years and feels it’s important that information about the condition is made available.

She said: “These sort of days are really helpful, because there’s always lots of different things taking place with diabetes.

“I’ve always tried to take good care of my diabetes, as it runs in my family, but there’s obviously a lot of people who maybe don’t know as much as about them.

“Anything that helps learn about diabetes is a good thing.”

Diabetes develops when the amount of glucose in the body is too high.

Type 1 diabetics cannot produce any insulin at all, and sufferers are forced to rely on injections.

Type 2 diabetes normally occurs in older people, typically after the age of 40 and can, in some cases be treated by diet or tablets.

There are currently over 2.5 million people with diabetes in the UK and there are more than half a million people with diabetes who have the condition and don’t know it.

For more information on the condition, Debbie can be reached at the centre on 0141 531 6028.