Candace (not her real name) is an acquaintance of someone I know personally. She already has high blood pressure and was recently diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes. Her doctor indicated that her diabetic condition has much to do with her physical condition. He recommended dietary changes and exercise.
Candace’s background information:
- Race: African American
- Age: 30
- Height: 5′-0″
- Weight: approximately 100 pounds overweight
Her response to the doctor’s recommendation is shocking…..
(paraphrased) “Everyone in my family is big. And now I have Type-2 Diabetes just like them. It’s genetic. It’s not because of how I eat. I love food. Diet and exercise won’t help my Diabetes and I’m not going to make any changes. That doctor doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”
**Who or what is to blame for Candace’s attitude? Upbringing? Lack of healthy education in general? Or something else?
Please keep it real in the comments.
Layla says
May 13, 2010 at 11:51 amSheesh. There are faster ways to kill yourself.
But seriously, I think it’s upbringing and lack of desire to change. It’s so much harder to change your ways and be healthy than it is to just remain the same… or so people think. If Candace lost weight and reversed her diabetes, she would see that life was MUCH harder before.
Alice says
May 13, 2010 at 11:54 amI think it’s a combination of everything. It’s hard to change what you’ve been brought up in when you don’t have the proper knowledge. Before dismissing her doctor’s recommendations, she should ask more questions. I mean, you don’t have to give it up the foods you love. Just in moderation. Maybe her doctor could recommend her a good food nutritionist.
Candace doesn’t have the proper information, therefore her Doctor should try to get her the information she needs.
Julia says
May 13, 2010 at 11:57 amWow, this sounds a lot like my parents (who both don’t believe their doctor’s diabetic diagnosis.) I think the “problem” in these cases are a combination of all of the things that you mention – upbringing and lack of education, possibly mixed in with some serious denial, and (I don’t want to say laziness) but inability to properly be able to handle the lifestyle change – physically and, maybe more importantly, mentally.
Unfortunately, as we all know, so many diabetics don’t do anything about their diagnosis. It is really a shame because it can be controlled (and even eliminated) in some cases.
I hope your friend’s acquaintance “man’s” up and takes pride and responsibility for her health and her life.
I am working with my parent’s now with their struggle.
It’s do-able (controlling diabetes,) you just have to put your mind, heart, and body into it. Aren’t you worth it?!
Julia
http://jewliagoulia.blogspot.com
Josie says
May 13, 2010 at 11:59 amI read that 4 out of 5 black women is overweight or obese (according to the US Department of Health & Human Services). Very sad. I think it is a combination of upbringing, economics, and lack of education (or lack of paying attention to the education). But of course I am NOT lumping all black women together.
Here’s a link on those statistics: http://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/templates/content.aspx?ID=6456
Christine says
May 13, 2010 at 12:02 pmWow. This is really ridiculous. She is putting her body and life at so much risk. What I don’t understand is her complete lack of willingness to try at all. You dont have to eat 500 calories a day and weigh everything and work out like a fiend to see results. I have an uncle in a similar situation where food is more important than trying to improve his health. I am a about 40 pounds above the high end of what is a healthy weight scale for someone my size. Lately Ive been making small changes to affect my weight outcome such as adding a serving of veggies whenever I can and cutting back on sugared drinks. I don’t have diabetes or high blood pressure. My cholesterol is a little high.You don’t have to cut out everything completely.I feel like she’s saying she’d rather die young than make a few changes and possibly have a better life.
Even if she drops some of the weight it would help.That being said I understand how hard it is to cut back or give up things we love. But I choose to try to improve my health rather than get more health problems from the weight.
Jessica @ How Sweet says
May 13, 2010 at 12:02 pmI think it’s all of the above. Unfortunately so many others feel the same way. Hopefully she will meet someone who can change her mind. She is probably also overwhelmed with the weight, and feels like it would be impossible to change.
Kelly @ Healthy Living With Kelly says
May 13, 2010 at 12:08 pmThat makes me sad because she is running the real risk of seriously causing severe damage (and even death) to her body. I do believe that everyone gets a wake up call and obviously this was not hers. Hopefully she gets hers before it is too late!
Fattie Fatterton says
May 13, 2010 at 12:10 pmI honestly think it’s the way that the media portrays Type II Diabetes. What people don’t realize is that heart disease usually is caused by Diabetes.
I watched my father die from this. Three heart attacks, glaucoma, neuropathy – all caused by diabetes. But no one ever talks about that.
Josie says
May 13, 2010 at 1:52 pmSee that. I never knew it could cause so many complications. It’s good to be learning from this discussion.
renee says
May 13, 2010 at 12:39 pmwhen your support system tells you these kind of things, it would have to be a 1000 times harder to both face what needed to be done, and oppose your family.
Erin says
May 13, 2010 at 12:47 pmAs someone with gestational diabetes (which is basically type 2) I know for a fact that diet and exercise are very important! I know that exercise helps my body produce and absorb insulin. I also know for a fact that if I have too many carbs in one meal (example pizza) I will have high blood sugar. These two factors (along with meds if needed) are what can control and if you lose enough weight maybe even make your diabetes go away.
Just because something is in your genes doesn’t mean you will get it if you take care of yourself.
For the obesity side of things, I think it is a lack of self love. If you don’t love or care about yourself you wont take care of yourself.
cher says
May 13, 2010 at 1:34 pmi am a type 2 diabetic. i’m only about 10-15 lbs of where my doctor would like to see me.
i know for a FACT that diet and exercise DRAMATICALLY affects my glucose counts. on days i don’t exercise, i sometimes have to inject twice the insulin i would on days that i don’t eat right and exercise.
to blow a diagnoses off like that just sounds ridiculous. the problem i see is that her whole life, she’s seen her family take the same non-caring attitude towards diabetes. that attitude is the reason her family is all overweight, and the reason they all have diabetes. if it were me, i’d take the lead and show my family what diet and exercise can do. i’m 5’7″ and 160 lbs. it’s NOT that overweight, yet i still suffer from neuropathy in my feet and poor circulation that causes my palms to be red constantly. i diet and exercise best i can, and i still see the symptoms and the affects of this diagnoses, and i’m only going on 37.
life is a gift, not a right. you have to do what you can to maintain that not only for yourself, but for those around you that love you and want you around for a very long time. i can’t even imagine what that weight and attitude will do.
Josie says
May 13, 2010 at 1:50 pmCher, thanks for sharing your experiences. I had no idea you had to deal with so much. It obviously takes a lot discipline on your part to stay balanced and healthy.
cher says
May 13, 2010 at 4:59 pmshe should watch The Biggest Loser on the nights they show them going to the doctor, getting diagnosed, and see how after weeks of diet and exercise, not only do they lose weight.. some are CURED of their diabetes, or able to go off their medication. this woman’s attitude honestly makes me shake my head and cringe. if i didn’t, i’d probably end up lecturing her for hours!! lmao
Art says
May 13, 2010 at 1:37 pmWow. My Dad just died suddenly after a few years of not taking care of his diabetes.
I don’t know what else to say. She’s going to kill her self, and it is going to hurt her loved ones in ways she can not imagine.
Carissa says
May 13, 2010 at 2:21 pmI think it’s denial, big and ugly. Diabetes isn’t just about your size, it’s also about circulation, hormones, etc. It most definitely can be controlled and sometimes reversed with diet. Exercise helps, but diet is key. ::sigh:: very sad.
The Duo Dishes says
May 13, 2010 at 2:26 pmIt’s sad to hear that. If a disease like diabetes runs in the family, it’s very unhealthy and dangerous. To think like that teaches the younger generations that it’s OK, and it’s not. You have to be educated about your health, your body and your wellbeing. Hopefully she won’t learn that ‘education’ the hard way.
LaShaune says
May 13, 2010 at 2:29 pmIt’s this exact mindset that I’ve decided to pursue an RD. I want my people to understand what’s killing them. It’s all wonderful to have a healthy body image, but when you MD tells you that you have these types of ailments, something needs to click. You don’t have to deprive yourself of the foods you enjoy, folks just need to learn alternatives and exercise. This woman needs to wake up and realize she CAN make small changes in order to save her life. Otherwise, she’s headed for a stroke, heart attack, cancer, other comorbidities related to diabetes.
Both sides of family suffer from type-2 diabetes, my maternal grandmother just lost her left foot and may loose her right one, has been on dialysis for forever and smokes! What the hell?
I won’t be another statistic for the ADA or Am Heart Association to count.
Pocket says
May 13, 2010 at 3:06 pmSomeone needs a slap in the face badly. What an ignorant way of thinking. To say that the doctor does not know what he is talking about is nothing but pure uneducated ignorance. I will love to keep it real but it will not be nice what I have to say, not only to her but the people who ignore her dangerous behavior
Quix says
May 13, 2010 at 3:11 pmOn one hand, I have my vices I know aren’t healthy for me, so I get it. You don’t want to ditch everything comfortable. However, I do a lot of things right for my few things I do wrong, and I think a medical diagnosis like this would be more than enough to shake me up. Then again, it’s the peer pressure thing – if all your friends jumped off a bridge, would you? Some people would…
Eunice says
May 13, 2010 at 3:15 pmI think lack of education and upbringing have a lot to do with it. Candace has accepted this as an unchangeable part of her future because she has never seen any different.
I took a Nutrition Education class last semester where we discussed patients with attitudes like Candace’s and how to approach them and encourage them to change. The thing is, they aren’t ready to change. Nowhere near being ready. The first step is for the person to realize what the risks are of continuing down this path and how they can affect their quality of life. Hopefully her doctor or a close friend can encourage her to see a dietitian who can can help get her to the point where she can contemplate change.
Tracey @ I'm Not Superhuman says
May 13, 2010 at 3:23 pmThis is really sad. I work for a diabetes magazine, so I’m all too familiar with the complications of diabetes. It’s not about whether you have to go through the bother of taking medications every day or testing your blood sugar. It’s about being at a very increased risk for heart disease, stroke, coronary artery disease, neuropathy, kidney disease, retinopathy, and so on. There’s a reason poorly controlled diabetes leads to blindness and amputations. There is a very strong genetic component of type 2 diabetes (and African Americans are at a greater risk than whites because of genetic factors) but there’s an equally strong environmental one and being overweight and obese directly contribute to the insulin resistance that is type 2 diabetes. Here’s more info: http://www.diabetes.org/diabetes-basics/type-2
Denial is understandable, but it’s sad when it leads to really serious health complications down the road.
Heather (Heather's Dish) says
May 13, 2010 at 3:25 pmit sounds like a mix of upbringing and lack of education, but a lot of it could be denial as well. if she doesn’t live her life like she has a serious disease, then maybe she feels it will just disappear. i hope she decides that her life is worth saving though and changes some of the patterns for the better!
JourneyBeyondSurvival says
May 13, 2010 at 3:36 pmI see much of the problem being the morbidly obese culture. I know some very close people that are morbidly obese. They see the problem being one that can’t be helped. It seems ludicrous at times when it is so obvious to the outside world. But they honestly feel they will never succeed.
I tried to talk to one person’s son and he too was convinced that ‘healthy’ lifestyle would do absolutely nothing for his mother. Genetics he said.
Yes, genetics are a huge part. But that is no excuse to jump on the bandwagon WITH those genes! It is worth the fight, even if only to maintain current numbers and stats.
Sarah says
May 13, 2010 at 3:44 pmI’m really not sure what drives this person’s (bad) decisions, but I can say I have made related bad decisions like this. Although I am not at liberty to say that this person thinks and feels just like I did (hopefully she feels nowhere near as bad), I can say that when I weighed almost 300 lbs it was more apathy and indifference that led me to make terrible food- and lifestyle- decisions. I knew that my obesity was killing me, but I almost didn’t care. It was easier to make excuses etc. to justify the decisions, I felt, than to deal with these underlying problems. I’m not sure, but I will think of your friend because it is possible she feels the same, this makes me sad. Although I have not had type II diabetes, I relate to her a lot. Wanting to change your life is hard, takes courage, and takes time — but it is so worth it.
Debra says
May 13, 2010 at 3:46 pmThis reminds me of the father that brought his son to our office because of headaches. The son had poor eyesight and refused to wear his glasses creating eye strain resulting in headaches. The father believed the headaches caused the poor eyesight.
We eventually had to convince him to try two weeks of constantly wearing the glasses to see if the headaches diminished and they did.
Not as serious a problem as diabetes but just to show how some people think.
I’m with everyone else that Candace has seen her family live with diabetes for years and probably with no serious adverse effects. It’s a shame that it will take someone’s death to get her to turn around. It could be lack of education but I’ve seen our nurses make referral after referral for patients to see specialists and they refuse or cancel the appointments. You can’t make a patient take of themself.
River says
May 13, 2010 at 4:37 pmI almost got type-2 diabetes. I had the “pre” version. Then I started eating healthier. I moved a little. Now I don’t need to take any meds and I’m in no danger of getting diabetes. I wish families didn’t hurt each other this much. I seriously don’t understand it. Sorry to hear about Candace’s reaction. She is not the only one. And knowing that saddens me.
Kevin says
May 13, 2010 at 5:10 pmDepending on how soon it has been since she had the diagnosis, she could still be in the denial stage. No one wants to believe that they are personally responsible for putting their own health and life expectancy at risk. I feel bad for her and hope she wakes up and turns herself around.
I feel even worse for the future generation that I see at work. There is a little 3rd grade girl… well, little is not accurate, who has to weigh nearly as much as I do. And I am over-weight for my age/height. She is a foot shorter than me and easily twice the girth. I can’t imagine how hard her future is going to be when she is already so far out of whack. And this isn’t [just] poor genes. She eats half a bag of potato chips each day for snack… a big bag… not a vending machine sized bag. And that’s just snack… the rest of her eating habits are just as bad. How do you recover from that upbringing? Will she even make it to 30?
merri says
May 13, 2010 at 6:08 pmHmm well doctors can be very high handed and rude and dismissive, so I can definitely see Candace not wanting to take the doctor’s advice. If everyone/everything I know is this runs in my family and this is how everyone eats, then I’d probably be more likely to go with that then some doctor who just randomly starts spouting off things to change everything I do. It might help if she shopped around some different doctors and spoke with some people who were in a similar situation and what they’ve done to help control their diabetes, etc, (people that arent in her family/community) and also to check around online. Cuz often if my doctor says something, all I want to do is the OPPOSITE even if I previously would have done what she said had she not said it.
My nana has diabetes, I think it’s 2, it’s the kind that comes later, and she just kept eating fast food and everything bad for her, sneaking candy that my cousin had, my cousin even hid it from her but she still did. And soda. And now she has to take insulin shots when at first it would have been a diet controled thing only. Some people just don’t want to change. Diabetes does run in my family through her side but im hoping I eat healthily enough to not get it.
Mary (A Merry Life) says
May 13, 2010 at 7:20 pmThat’s sad but unfortunately all to common. It’s just assumed in some families and areas that people will get it because they are going to be big no matter what. And worse in a lot of those cases they ignore the diet/exercise aspect that could control it and then do NOTHING but allow it to get worse because they won’t change the lifestyle. Makes me sad.
Jody - Fit at 52 says
May 13, 2010 at 7:43 pmThere information is all out there everywhere…. I say denial & not wanting to do the hard work. I don’t know her but just my humble opinion. I know & have heard of plenty of people that are told lose weight or your life & they don’t chose their life. Very sad!
South Beach Steve says
May 13, 2010 at 8:29 pmDenial.
amanda says
May 13, 2010 at 10:14 pmFirst off her upbringing is to be blamed because it seems her family knew no better. Also there is more education on this topic so her doctor should be the one pushing her to change her habits. If she had kids this will probably continue throughout more generations. It is sad.
lisa says
May 13, 2010 at 10:15 pmugh- that is SO offputting to me. I have type 1 Diabetes, an no amount of work, proper blood sugar monitering or healthy food i eat can reverse my disease. She at least has the opportunity to get RID of type 2 diabetes, and is neglecting to do so!
That angers me so much- it’s not fair! I whope her the best and hope she reconsiders!!
Miz says
May 14, 2010 at 6:27 amcrazy crazy SEEMINGLY crazy and yet the pain we know is so so so often “better” than the pain we do no.
we humans are nuts 🙂
KCLAnderson (Karen) says
May 14, 2010 at 10:29 amWithout reading everyone else’s comments first (and I do recognize that I am late to the party on this one…had wanted to respond the other day but didn’t), I’d say denial born of a fear so deep she doesn’t even know it’s there.
Michelle says
May 18, 2010 at 5:10 pmI think someone should introduce her to the movie Food Inc. I am 28 years old and was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes after my gestational diabetes never went away. Anyway, about 3 weeks ago I saw that movie, and haven’t even been able to look at any sort of unhealthy food ever since. Now our cupboards are being stocked with more organic produce and brown carbs. As of this morning I weighed 213lbs, and have lost about 6 lbs since seeing the movie.
Evie says
December 5, 2010 at 4:54 pmMy estranged husband is the same way, though further along. His denial is deep and profound – so much so that when he was diagnosed with type 2 about 6 years ago, he took the nutritionist’s guide and turned it upside down. All he eats (and I do mean ALL) is high salt/high fat snack foods, cheese, processed meats (ham, bacon, etc), eggs, white bread, white rice, and high sugar snacks/desserts. He washes it all down with regular pepsi, and for breakfast has a cup of coffee with 1/2 cup of sugar. Yes. You read that right. There’s an old 1/2 measuring scoop in the large sugar container, and he dumps a full one of those into his morning coffee cup.
I’m a vegetarian, long-distance runner. He initially asked me to help him stick to the recommended diet. I tried. That lasted a week. He got angry – at me, the doctor, the nutritionist – and swapped to what I described above.
It’s nothing but slow suicide.
Since diagnosis, his doctor has had to put him on increasingly large doses of metaformin; about a year ago, the doctor added a blood pressure med; and at the latest check up (last week) the doctor found his blood pressure climbing once again, and switched him to lisinopril.
Denial is an ugly thing, but there’s nothing the rest of us can do until the patient decides to face up to his or her reality and accept the diabetes diagnosis.