Technology focus for National Diabetes Week

Sunday, July 14, was the beginning of National Diabetes Week, which had a focus this year on the impact of diabetes technology and the need for further accessibility.

The Gunnedah Times spoke with Focus on Function’s accredited practising dietitian Lila Juwayed during the week.

The dietitian had noticed the traditional glucose monitoring practices were predominantly used by her patients in the few months she has been working in Gunnedah.

“I have not come across [the new technology] since moving to Gunnedah, so I would be curious to know how accessible the newer technology is for people living in regions like Gunnedah,” she said.

Thanks to advancement, people are now able to use continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices to monitor glucose levels. Some even connect with apps to monitor everything eaten by the user.

These devices can provide more information than the traditional skin prick methods.

From talking with a diabetes specialised dietician, Lila knows that some of the new technology is more efficient than the past ways. It made recording patterns easier, and results were precise to show where issues were arising.

“What I have seen with clients who have diabetes is just that traditional glucose monitors where you prick your skin once or twice a day,” she said.

Lila suspects it may be harder to access those newer technologies but is not entirely sure.

“A lot of [my clients], when I bring it up, they are not familiar with it – as in the endocrinologist or whoever they are seeing has not mentioned it,” she said.

“I imagine if it has not been mentioned, it has not reached the area yet.

According to the National Diabetes Service Scheme, “the Australian government provides access to subsidised CGM and Flash GM products through the NDSS.”

The patient needs to be registered with the NDSS and meet the eligibility criteria.

Type 2 diabetes can be a result of lifestyle factors such as poor diet and minimal physical activity.

“Those conditions, by the time they developed, had been in the background leading up to that for years prior,” Lila said.

“My advice would be to start early, care about health, and do what you can.

“It is not something that develops overnight. Any little step that you do every day to look after yourself is contributing to something in the long run.”

Lila also believes it is becoming harder to make healthier decisions.

“[With] the standard of a western diet, it is not obvious what is right and wrong when it comes to eating,” she said.

“A lot of people might have good intentions and not necessarily feel like they are making poor decisions in food.

“I do think it is a lot easier to be unhealthy these days than healthy.”

An example she gave was of packaged food that may be advertised as a healthy product, but has hidden ingredients that are not.

Some people find it more affordable to purchase convenient food rather than fresh foods, especially for larger families.

While there is much talk about the physical health effects of diabetes, Lila wanted to draw attention to the mental and social aspects the disease weighs on.

“I think that is something that people forget about sometimes with diseases. There is a big mental burden that comes with it,” she said.

“[Eating] is not just something we do to survive, it does have such a social element and celebratory element and is attached to everything that we do as people.

“Once you have a diagnosis that affects what you eat, it affects every day of your life.

“For a lot of people, having diabetes, there is a mental stress that comes with it too. It comes with a lot of anxiety of what you can and cannot eat and a lot of feelings of guilt.

Member for Parkes Mark Coulton said the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Health, Aged Care and Sport handed down the report from its Inquiry into Diabetes earlier in the month.

“The recommendations include expanding subsidised access to insulin pumps for people living with type 1 diabetes, as well as continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices for people living with type 2 and type 3c diabetes requiring regular insulin, and people with gestational diabetes,” he said.

“Increased government funding for type 1 research and trials and expanding access to bariatric surgery within the public system for eligible patients are also included in the recommendations, in addition to a focus on prevention with recommendations for the Australian Dietary Guidelines to be reviewed, a national public health campaign, national screening programs, reforms in food labelling targeting sugar, and the regulation of the marketing and advertising of unhealthy food to children.”

Diabetes is a chronic condition. Type 1 is an autoimmune condition which is not linked to modifiable lifestyle factors. Type 2 is where the body becomes resistant to the normal effects of insulin and gradually loses the ability to provide enough insulin in the pancreas. It has genetic and family related risk factors but is also associated with modifiable lifestyle risk factors. Gestational diabetes is caused by higher than normal blood glucose levels during pregnancies and most women will no longer have diabetes after the baby is born. According to Diabetes Australia, almost 1.5 million Australians are living with diagnosed diabetes and up to 500,000 people living undiagnosed with type two.