Diabetes and Obesity in Children

Another article about the shortening of Amercians life span due to diabetes and obesity.

Children who get obesity-related diabetes face a much higher risk of kidney failure and death by middle age than people who develop diabetes as adults, a study suggests.

The study offers some of the first strong evidence of the consequences of the nation's growing epidemic of Type 2 diabetes in children, said Dr. William Knowler, a co-author and researcher with the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

The research also lends support to warnings that diabetes and other obesity-related ills are on the verge of shortening average life span in the United States.


The researchers calculated that the incidence of end-stage kidney failure and death by age 55 was nearly five times higher in people who developed type 2 diabetes before age 20 than in those who developed diabetes in adulthood.

Medicare Coverage of Diabetes Testing Supplies

Here is some information on what Medicare patient has access to when it come to diabetes testing supplies. These include Glucose Meters, Test Strips, Lancets, control solution, batteries for the glucose meter and lancing devices.

Diabetes Increases Around the Globe

Diabetes is not just an issue in the United States. Diabetes is a growing disease around the globe especially in China and India.

"China has the largest number over age 20, around 39 million people, or about 2.7 percent of the adult population, the federation says. The group says India has the second-largest number of cases, with an estimated 30 million people, or about 6 percent of the adult population.

There are many factors driving the growth in diabetes worldwide, but most experts agree that changes in lifestyle and diet are the chief culprits, in addition to genetic predisposition. As developing countries industrialize, people tend to do work involving less physical activity and eat food that is cheap but high in calories. The combination causes weight gain, which leads to greater risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, the most common form of the disease."

Diabetes may shorten life span

In a New York Times article, the diabetes and obesity epidemic will threaten the upward trend in life expectancy.

Some worry, for example, that today’s fat children will grow up to be tomorrow’s heart disease and diabetes patients, destroying the nation’s gains in health and well-being.

“It is very legitimate to be concerned about levels of overweight and obesity in kids,” said David Williamson, a senior biomedical research scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “But at the same time, those levels of obesity are overlaid on improvements in health in children, which also affect long-term health and longevity.”

S. Jay Olshansky, a professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at the University of Illinois at Chicago, predicted in The New England Journal of Medicine that obesity would lead to so much diabetes and heart disease that life expectancy would “level off or even decline within the first half of this century.”

Information about taking care of diabetes with glucose monitoring

Here is an excellent page about using diabetes testing supplies and glucose monitoring to control diabetes.

Good news about coffee and diabetes

Drinking coffee is linked to a reduced risk for diabetes, a new study reports, and caffeine apparently has little to do with the effect.

With less Medicare funding for dialysis diabetes education is critical.

With less Medicare funding for dialysis diabetes education is critical.

Medicare funding per person for dialysis is at the same level as it was in 1983. This is one more reason to be vigilant about maintaining low blood glucose levels through daily monitoring and quartly testing of A1c levels.

"Combined with a growing elderly population more prone to kidney failure the
number of people on dialysis is expected to double to 800,000 by 2010, and reach 2.2 million by 2030 — and dialysis care could reach a tipping point if nothing is done.

Education is important because the leading causes of kidney failure are two preventable diseases diabetes and high blood pressure, said Vinay Kantamneni, medical director at the dialysis center. The typical dialysis patient is over 60 and on Medicare."

"Kantamneni said if
preventative treatment is started immediately on people already with
diabetes, life expectancy can be raised and dialysis delayed by several
years."

Pharmacists oppose Medicare rule because of diabetes supplies impact.

Pharmacists oppose Medicare rule because of diabetes supplies impact. I have read anywhere that competitive bidding is a good idea. I guess the point is to save money, but the effect on service will be dramatic.

"Millions of Medicare beneficiaries would face decreased access to durable medical equipment, such as wheelchairs and diabetes test strips, if a proposed rule by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) takes effect, according to the National Community Pharmacists Association (NCPA)."

"The so-called "Competitive Acquisition Program" developed by CMS creates huge administrative burdens for pharmacists that could affect the availability of durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies (DMEPOS), as well as Medicare Part B medications, immunizations, therapeutic shoes, diabetes supplies, and nebulizers. The proposed rule would require pharmacists to obtain additional accreditation and submit to a competitive bidding process in order to continue to sell these essential supplies to Medicare beneficiaries beginning in 2007."

Medicare users beware of the doughnut hole

Here is a good article on potential costly suprises concerning the new Medicare drug benefit. It is commonly refered to as the doughnut hole, where seniors are hit by a coverage gap and must pay 100% of their drug costs over $2250 until they've used $5,100 worth.

Medicare monthly premium set to increase for 2007

Premiums for Medicare Part B will be going up again next year the AP reports. The current premium is $88.50 and will be raised to at least $98.50.
"The elderly will face another double-digit rise in their Medicare premiums next year, resulting in monthly payments of nearly $100.
The monthly premiums for supplementary medical insurance will rise from $88.50 to at least $98.40, the Bush administration projected Tuesday. That's an 11.2 percent increase, and it's possible the amount will be slightly higher."

Medicare Competitive Bidding for mail order diabetes suppliers

The Medicare Competitive Bidding program seems to be rolling forward but it has me throughly confused. My questions resolve around what it means for mail order companies such as ourselves. According to the latest news from Medicare, it will accept bids for the top 10 MSA except for LA, NYC in the Fall of 2006 for a yet to be determined list of HCPCS codes. So to participate in these markets a company will have to be successful during the bidding process. But the latest doc also discusses creating both regional and national mail order territories sometime in 2008-2009. Is the MSA bidding only for local retailers. Can mail order companies still accept new customers in these MSA's. Or must mail order companies compete in every MSA's bidding?

Diabetes and Alzeheimers

Another excellent article on Diabetes from The New York Times. This one examines the link between Diabetes and Alzheimer's. Once again, stressing the need to keep blood glucose levels low even among the elderly.

"Several new studies suggest that diabetes increases the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, adding to a store of evidence that links the disorders. The studies involve only Type 2 diabetes, the most common kind, which is usually related to obesity.

Not everyone with diabetes gets Alzheimer’s, and not all Alzheimer’s patients are diabetic. But in the past decade, several large studies have found that compared with healthy people of the same age and sex, those with Type 2 diabetes are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s. The reason is not known, but researchers initially suspected that cardiovascular problems caused by diabetes might contribute to dementia by blocking blood flow to the brain or causing strokes.

Researchers have even suggested that Alzheimer’s disease may actually be “Type 3 diabetes,” a form of the disease affecting the nervous system."