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Diabetes News You Can Use
August 2024

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Spotlight
Programs in Texas
Diabetes News & Resources
Journal Articles
Other Diabetes Education
Opportunities and Events
FAQ

Diabetes News You Can Use is a free news bulletin of the Texas Department of State Health Services. It is compiled by the Diabetes Prevention and Control Program and highlights information and news related to diabetes.

Spotlight

Texas Diabetes Council
The Texas Diabetes Council (TDC) celebrated its 40th anniversary during the July 18, 2024 meeting. The TDC is established by the Texas Legislature and is composed of individuals who are enthusiastic about addressing issues that affect people with diabetes in Texas. Since its establishment, the TDC has made an impact on the lives of Texans living with diabetes. A few of the accomplishments include conceptualizing the Texas Diabetes Institute, launching a US-Mexico Border Diabetes Prevention and Control Project, and developing multiple educational resources for patients, providers, schools, and more. For more information, visit the TDC webpage. 

Programs in Texas

Food Farmacy
Food Farmacy in Houston and Pasadena is a partnership between Harris Health and the Houston Food Bank. It provides fresh fruits and vegetables and other foods. Food Farmacy also offers education, nutritional guidance, and help qualifying for social services. Individuals connected with Food Farmacy may also enroll in the culinary medicine program at UT Health Sciences School of Public Health. Persons encountering food insecurity and chronic disease may participate and need a prescription from the Harris Health System. People experiencing uncontrolled chronic conditions can participate long-term. Adults facing food insecurity can visit the Food Farmacy at least once. For more information, visit the Food Farmacy webpage.

Texas Consortium for the Non-Medical Drivers of Health
The Texas Non-Medical Drivers of Health (NMDOH) Consortium has 115 programs. These programs are focused on research, policy, and practice. There is the option to search by program sponsor, drivers of health, target populations, health conditions, counties, active/inactive status, program evaluation, and funding type. For more details, visit the Texas NMDOH Consortium webpage.

Texercise Texercise offers free physical activity and nutrition resources for adults 45 years and over.
Texercise Connects provides an activity book, exercise videos, and opportunities to lead or partner with Texercise. Texercise is a health and wellness initiative of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC). To learn more, visit the Texercise webpage.

Blindness Education, Screening and Treatment Program
The Texas Health and Human Services runs the Blindness, Education, Screening and Treatment (BEST) Program to prevent blindness, offer vision screenings, provide medical eye treatment, and give resources across Texas. Medical eye treatment is available for eligible individuals with conditions like diabetic retinopathy, retinal detachment, glaucoma, and other eye diseases. For more details, visit the BEST Program webpage.

Diabetes News & Resources

Food for Life
Our New! Food for Life: Living Well with Prediabetes or Diabetes booklet is now available in English. This is a meal-planning booklet for patients who have diabetes or prediabetes and contains serving sizes, food preparation, healthy eating tips, and a food diary. Our updated Spanish version is coming soon. To view all our publications, please visit our Diabetes Educational Materials.

Taking Charge of Your Health: Managing Diabetes One Day at a Time
Our New! Taking Charge of Your Health: Managing Diabetes One Day at a Time booklet is now also available in English. This booklet discusses topics such as medications, low blood sugar, heart and mental health, kidney disease, and foot, eye, and dental care. It also contains charts for daily food logs and medicine records. To view all our publications, please visit our Diabetes Educational Materials.

DiabetesTV
DiabetesTV has links to the CDC’s public information campaigns and video collections for type 2 diabetes prevention, prediabetes, and living well with diabetes. You can find videos in English and Spanish. For more information, visit the DiabetesTV webpage.

Danatech Educational Resources
Danatech was created by the Association of Diabetes Care and Education Specialists (ADCES) to address the changes in diabetes technology. It supports healthcare professionals by providing updated information, training, podcasts, and education about diabetes technology. The goal is to empower patient-centered care and solutions. For more information, visit the Danatech Educational Resources webpage.

Talking to Others About T1D
This resource provides tips for teens to talk to others about type 1 diabetes (T1D) and advocate for themselves. Breakthrough T1D, formerly the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), is a global non-profit organization that promotes treatment, research, and advocacy. This organization also influences policy and improves access to care for type 1 diabetes (T1D) and its complications.

Journal Articles

Protective Factors and the Pathogenesis of Complications in Diabetes  
April 2024 – Endocrine Review This study focuses on how certain protective factors can help reduce the development and severity of diabetic complications. It suggests sorting diabetes complications based on the tissue they affect, such as vascular, parenchymal, or a combination of both, rather than the traditional microvascular and macrovascular categories. This review looks at the clinical, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms that support the roles of natural protective factors in causing and progressing chronic diabetes complications.

Other Diabetes Education Opportunities and Events

Webinars
The American Diabetes Association’s (ADA) Standards of Care in Diabetes—2024
This video provides a review of the ADA’s 2024 Standards of Care in Diabetes, specifically focusing on Section 10, Cardiovascular Disease and Risk Management. The discussion highlights the updates and clinical impacts for individuals with type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and chronic kidney disease. The moderator of the video is Robert Gabbay, M.D., Ph.D. from the ADA, and the panelist is Dennis Bruemmer, M.D., Ph.D. from the Cleveland Clinic, who is Board-Certified in Cardiology, Cardiovascular Disease, and Endocrinology. This 57-minute video is sponsored by “Know Diabetes by Heart”, an initiative by the ADA, American Heart Association (AHA), and industry leaders, and is sponsored by Novo Nordisk. The initiative aims to reduce cardiovascular disease in individuals living with type 2 diabetes. To view this video, visit YouTube. For more information, visit the ADA’s 2024 Standards of Care in Diabetes webpage.

Diabetes and the Body
This video from “Diabetes UK” is under nine minutes long and uses an animated body model to show how the body processes food for energy, how this is impacted by diabetes, the difference between types 1 and 2 diabetes and their treatments, insulin function, and how high blood sugar affects wound healing, vision, and energy. To view this video, visit YouTube.

Events
Texas Diabetes Council   
The TDC’s mission is to effectively reduce the health and economic burdens of diabetes in Texas. The TDC meets quarterly in public Council meetings and in two TDC workgroups, the TDC Health Professionals and Outcomes Workgroup (HPOW) and the Advocacy and Outreach Workgroup (AOW). The next Council meeting and workgroup meetings are on October 10, 2024. For more information, visit the TDC webpage.

TRAP Yoga Tuesdays 
Northeast Texas Public Health District’s Center for Healthy Living is offering free TRAP (Trauma Release And Peace) Yoga on Tuesdays in August from 5:30-6:30 p.m. with Registered Yoga Teacher Kiara Smothers. TRAP Yoga is a low-impact, healing, and wellness experience. To attend, please call the Center for Healthy Living at (903) 593-7474, or e-mail Joy Johnson at JJohnson@netphd.org. For more information, view the TRAP Yoga flyer.

Healthier Texas Summit
The Healthier Texas Summit is on October 10-11, 2024 in Austin. It is an initiative of It’s Time Texas in collaboration with The University of Texas System. This summit is an opportunity for public health and wellness leaders to address evolving community challenges and share innovations and opportunities to build a healthier Texas. For more information, visit the Healthier Texas Summit webpage.

Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo
The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo (FNCE) is on October 5-8, 2024 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The conference focuses on important health issues affecting all Americans and explore advances in medical nutrition therapy, healthcare technology, and nutrition service access and opportunity. Attendees can expect culinary demonstrations, new product demonstrations, research presentations, and networking opportunities with potential employers and educational institutions. For more information, visit the FNCE webpage.

FAQ
Where can I find more information on helping with insulin costs?
A. The ADA’s insulin cost and affordability webpage provides resources for free, reduced, or capped insulin cost through Medicare, Medicaid, private/commercial insurance, and patient assistance programs.
How can I find out more information on becoming a Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP) supplier or finding a program near me?
A. The Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP) Expanded Model Orientation Webinar provides a map, guidance, and resources on becoming an MDPP supplier as well as reimbursement rates and how to maintain supplier status. There is a map of MDPP services to search by zip code to find Medicare Diabetes Prevention Programs throughout the United States.  

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Texas Health and Human Services (HHS) is a state agency that provides a wide range of benefits to residents of Texas. Some of the benefits of Texas HHS include:

Access to healthcare: Texas HHS offers various healthcare programs, including Medicaid and CHIP, to help low-income families and individuals afford healthcare services. The agency also provides resources for mental health and substance abuse treatment.

Assistance for people with disabilities: Texas HHS provides a variety of services to people with disabilities, including assistance with finding employment, housing, and healthcare.

Support for low-income families: Texas HHS offers several programs that help families who are struggling financially, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program.

Child support enforcement: Texas HHS helps ensure that children receive financial support from their parents by enforcing child support orders and providing resources for parents who need assistance.

Protection for vulnerable populations: Texas HHS works to protect vulnerable populations, including children, elderly individuals, and individuals with disabilities, from abuse and neglect.

Overall, Texas HHS plays a crucial role in ensuring that all Texans have access to the resources they need to live healthy, fulfilling lives.

Diabetes News You Can Use is a free news bulletin of the Texas Department of State Health Services. It is compiled by the Diabetes Prevention and Control Program, and highlights information and news related to diabetes.

Diabetes News and Resources

Updated Training Resources for School Staff from the American Diabetes Association (ADA)
The ADA provides a variety of training and support materials that can help prepare school staff to provide care to students with diabetes. Recently they have updated ‘Helping the Student with Diabetes Succeed: A Guide for School Personnel’ to reflect important improvements to diabetes technology and treatment.

Diabetes & Your Feet – Preventing or Managing Foot Issues
The ADA provides a tool for people with diabetes to learn more about how to prevent foot issues or how to manage current foot issues. Information is provided about common foot concerns for people with diabetes and recommendations for the best ways to care for your feet.

Could You Have Prediabetes? – Prediabetes Risk Test
Prediabetes is a serious health condition where blood sugar levels are higher than normal, but not high enough to be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. The CDC, in collaboration with the ADA, developed an online ‘Prediabetes Risk Test’ for people to determine their own risk for prediabetes. The test is available in Spanish and may also be printed out to take later.

Rural Diabetes Prevention and Management Toolkit
The Rural Health Information Hub offers a new toolkit that provides resources and best practices to help rural communities identify, implement, and sustain a program to prevent and/or manage diabetes. The modules in this toolkit contain information and resources to guide developing, evaluating, and sustaining a rural program for diabetes prevention and/or management.

Source: https://www.hhs.texas.gov/

It’s not always easy to follow your diabetes meal plan day after day, but these delicious recipes may help.

This list from Mayoclinic.org has something for everyone.

Diabetes is a disease or condition that occurs when your blood sugar (glucose) is too high. Over time, having high blood sugar levels can cause serious health problems. You can prevent or delay these problems by eating healthy meals, being physically active, monitoring your blood sugar and taking the medicine your doctor prescribes. Although there is no cure, millions of people with diabetes enjoy long, full lives, and you can, too.

Click HERE for full post on Texas Health and Human services site.

This one-day “wake-up call” reminds us about diabetes and the serious health issues it can cause. Diabetes can lead to heart disease, vision loss, kidney disease and loss of toes, feet or legs.

Sometimes you don’t even notice the symptoms of diabetes. Symptoms can occur gradually over several years, especially if you develop type 2 diabetes.

Collaborating with a diabetes care and education specialist, registered dietitian-nutritionist and others on your healthcare team to formulate a plan that fits your personal preferences and health needs can assist you to: