National Diabetes: Month My Favorite Aunt

Hey Y'all:

I was watching the news this morning and discovered that November is National Diabetes Awareness Month! Basketball great Earl "The Pearl" Monroe was on the show talking about his battle with Type 2 Diabetes and what he does to combat the disease. This topic got me to thinking about my favorite aunt.

Auntie Ruby was the first person in my life that I ever knew with Diabetes (not sure what type she had.) I remember her eating butter toast and a cup of coffee for breakfast and then pinching her tummy fat to give herself her insulin shot, every morning.

Auntie Ruby was my favorite aunt. She was funny, fair and fearless and she suffered with diabetes. I never quite understood why she would add sweet and low to her Sanka and give herself an insulin shot in the morning but in the evening drink Bacardi Rum and Coke.

Auntie Ruby was my favorite aunt, and although she didn't die due to the effects of diabetes (but from breast cancer) she didn't take seriously, the effects that her lifestyle had on her illness. She did enough not to go into diabetic shock and knew what to do to keep her 'sugar' under control but she didn't make the necessary lifestyle changes regarding diabetes. If I knew the following tips from MayoClinic.com , when I was a little girl I would have shared them with her.

So today in honor of Auntie Ruby and National Diabetes Month 2009 I'd like to share these tips on diabetes prevention.

1. Exercise... You gotta get moving to be healthy... get off the couch with those chips and get to playing that Wii Fit!
2. Eat plenty of fiber... You know fruits, veggies, beans, whole grains, nuts and seeds
3. Go for whole grains... skip the processed foods and go for items that have all the vitamins you need
4. Lose extra weight... go back to tip 1
5. Skip the fad diets and just make healthier choices

I'll be following these tips as well.

Until next time...
MUAH!