NHS failure threatens lives of diabetics

BRITAIN is facing a public health time bomb because thousands of people with diabetes are not getting vital treatment they need, new figures reveal.

The research shows as many as 40 per cent of the 2.8 million diabetics in England and Wales are not getting essential health checks putting them at risk of life threatening complications including strokes, heart disease and lower limb amputations. 
The figures, drawn from the Government’s Health and Social Care Information Service, have led to calls for urgent action to improve health care for all diabetics to prevent a surge in complication rates which add to the burgeoning diabetic health care bill which currently stands at £10billion a year. 
Barbara Young, chief executive of Diabetes UK, said: “The NHS already spends 10 per cent of its entire budget on diabetes and this will rise even further if we do not get better at supporting people with the condition to stay healthy.


http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/health/521575/Diabetics-lives-are-at-risk-due-to-NHS-failure?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+daily-express-life-and-style-health-news+%28Daily+Express+%3A%3A+Life+%26+Style+Health+Feed%29

i think the major problem with type2 is many of us are very happy to bury our heads in the sand, its the same type of denial that makes many people type 2 (not all i know) we know how we eat is wrong same as we know not going to the doc is wrong, this coupled with the docs being happy for us not go, its a lose lose situation, im currently avoiding the doc/nurse and they seem very happy for me to be doing so it seems

If 1% of the budget was spent on education and monitoring it would be a wise investment. Most diabetics have minimal knowledge of their condition and most docs leave them be until their decline eventually leads to complication.

Andy12345 wrote:i think the major problem with type2 is many of us are very happy to bury our heads in the sand, its the same type of denial that makes many people type 2 (not all i know) we know how we eat is wrong same as we know not going to the doc is wrong, this coupled with the docs being happy for us not go, its a lose lose situation, im currently avoiding the doc/nurse and they seem very happy for me to be doing so it seems

Due to what we have learned on forums we are the fortunate ones Andy but the majority of T2s just put their trust in their HCPs, we know the dietary advice is crap and many are refused test kit but it's criminal that 40% of diabetics do not receive proper health checks.

I do get all the checks yearly but then again keeping my BG under control means I'm at less of a risk of complications.

how many of the people not getting the checks want them? i was a typical dont go to the doctor type, i still am i suppose, although now my health is all important to me

Andy12345 wrote:how many of the people not getting the checks want them? i was a typical dont go to the doctor type, i still am i suppose, although now my health is all important to me

So was I, but only because when I went to the doctor's they never listened to me and wouldn't give me antibiotics even though I had had a chest infection for over a month. This happened so many times. Now I know antibiotics aren't good, but neither is being ill time after time and not being able to get over it.

Since my type 2 diagnosis, they now listen. So I go. I always cared about my health but just couldn't get the help I needed, and to be fair I didn't really know what I needed, but I wasn't the doctor, so how could I know?

And the reason the treatment for so many diabetics is abysmal, and the reason most dietitians recommend a diet of slow death ? Greed and corruption is high on the list, but the main reason this horror show goes on year after year, is because we let it happen. Most people are sheep and get lead to the slaughter without a whimper. My NHS diabetes team are fantastic, they ought to be, I trained them. Six years ago they had never heard of Dr. Richard Bernstein, they have now. Tests like plasma insulin levels, R and R interval study tests, standard procedures for Bernstein's patients are never normally done on the  NHS. I get all the test strips and any test I request whenever I want it.

It seemed to me within three months of diagnosis, if you want to get good treatment from your medics, learning more than your medics, was the only way to know whether your treatment was correct. Medics treat you very different when you ask for tests concerning diabetes they have never heard of. When a person has the sort of BG control that only one in a hundred get, they won't want to be liable for your control going south because of inadequate prescription test strips would they.

In short, you have to research and you have to demand what you require to stay in control of your diabetes. Many on this forum have paid into the NHS for decades and never claimed a penny, and in their hour of need they are treated like someone is doing them a favour, don't accept sub standard treatment, you have earned the right, you have paid for the right to receive the best care, If you accept second best, that's down to you.

I have so much more I could say on the subject of greed, corruption, exploitation, misinformation etc. etc. but I am told I am a militant, I am over the top, I put people off, so I will shut up. Tomorrow, all over the country many people will be told they are diabetics. Others will have feet amputated, others will be told their eye sight cannot be restored and for what is left of their life they will spend a great amount of time hooked up to a dialysis machine, but hey, let's not rock the boat eh. The last thing we want is anyone upset.

Eddie thanks for yet another brilliant post. Just what I needed to motivate me to look after myself better and to spread the low carb word.

Hi Eddie

You certainly have a good and well-trained NHS team! I'll have to try that - I think my practice is already sitting up a bit and taking notice of what I (and one other I believe) have achieved in a short time.

Eddie militant ? You're a pussy cat and just misunderstood ;-)
Never lose your passion ! Our job is to keep spreading the word.

Perhaps I am de-railing the thread, but, Eddie, what is/are "plasma insulin levels, R and R interval study tests". I suppose I should read Bernstein, but could you give a quick answer and say why they might be relevant to a T2, with normal blood sugars.
Many thanks
Sally

Sally wrote:Perhaps I am de-railing the thread, but, Eddie, what is/are "plasma insulin levels, R and R interval study tests".  I suppose I should read Bernstein, but could you give a quick answer and say why they might be relevant to a T2, with normal blood sugars.
Many thanks
Sally

Eddie could answer better than me on this but a plasma insulin level test I believe gives a very good insight into whether someone's diabetes is due to a lack of naturally produced insulin or whether there is plenty of natural insulin on board but the patients diabetes is due to insulin resistance such as seen in many type 2 diabetics...I never had that test myself though so I don't know a lot about it TBH.

mo1905 wrote:Eddie militant ? You're a pussy cat and just misunderstood ;-)
Never lose your passion ! Our job is to keep spreading the word.

Pussy cat?

The day Eddie changes his avatar to a kitty cat is the day I send for the men in white coats! lol

Many people, diabetics and medical professionals assume a type two has low insulin output hence the high BG readings as you would expect with type one diabetes. The fact is an overweight type two diabetic can have three times the circulating insulin levels as a slim non diabetic. Thus the last thing they need is more injected insulin or type two drugs that force the pancreas to output more unwanted insulin. The reason for the high BG numbers is insulin resistance brought about because for years in many cases the body has been deluged with insulin. It seems to me crazy to prescribe insulin or insulin inducing drugs if a Doctor has never tested plasma insulin. More insulin etc. can only make the insulin resistance worse for many, if not the majority of type two’s. Would more booze help an alcoholic or more heroin help a drug addict ? If insulin levels are unknown, prescribing medication is pure guesswork. As we know so often the scenario is try this drug if that does not work come back and we will try others A few years down the road the type two diabetic is on three or four type two drugs plus insulin, all making the situation worse. Couple that with the ludicrous dietary information, and what chance does the patient stand.

An R and R interval study test is a very cheap and simple test and can tell your Doctor how far your damage / complications may have progressed. It is like an ECG test but only uses 4 electrodes. It measures the difference in heart beat rate when breathing in and breathing out. It can tell the medic if the vagus nerve has been damaged. The vagus nerve is the main nerve junction running through your body. It controls heart rate, erection in men and things like stomach emptying rate. Limited damage can be reversed with rapid return to normal blood glucose numbers and can be checked say every 12 months to monitor how the diabetic is recovering and confirming the treatment plan is working. These tests obviously help the medic in working out the most effective treatment plan and when changes may be necessary. Don’t forget many type two’s have gone undiagnosed for years, some papers say in some cases up to ten years. Prof. Roy Taylor reckons up to 50% of type two’s are showing signs of retinopathy at diagnosis, a very sobering thought I reckon.

Look at the reality for so many. Dietary advice almost guaranteed to make the problem worse, many told you don’t need to test, many refused test strips, and many not even given the basic annual check ups according to the basic guidelines. So, the whole situation is a postcode lottery and a game of chance. I have seen family members die from diabetic complications, I have a type two diabetic son, how lucky when I became a diabetic I found DCUK. Over six years ago highly knowledgeable experts including Doctors were mods and the advice was fantastic.

Where are they all now you may ask ? All gone, sick of dealing with certain individuals, fed up with wasting their time dealing with thread derailments, realising they were being used for ulterior motives, fed up with the them and us game, in short the management and owners were and remain useless. Anyone remember the Southport Doctor ?   Labelled a troll by a certain individual as were other genuine medical Doctors such as Low Carb Expert and type two diabetic Jay Wortman who has become a good friend, he was banned twice. That’s my last comment on the DCUK forum, maybe others should give it a break too, for at least a while. But if most of the members knew the half of what has gone on over there they would be appalled, but hey, let’s not upset anyone eh.

Have a nice day

Eddie

That's really interesting, thank you Eddie.
Sally

Sorry Sally I meant to address the post to you, hope it helps.

Kind regards Eddie

I agree with all of your most recent post Eddie and I'm not worried about upsetting people, well those who deserve it anyway.  I am worried about the very many diabetics suffering because of bad dietary advice and it's for this reason that I would dearly love this forum to be a huge success and really grow in the not too distant future.  The advice here is fantastic.  I want newbies to feel welcome here and to see that what we want to do is to help people improve their health.  I admire your passion Eddie, thank you so much for what you do.  You're one of life's good guys.  We all know that here.  

Well said Zand. I think we're all interested in what's the best way to get that message across to as many as possible. Those of us on other forums can convey what we can elsewhere, but we want to see more actual members here as well - some 'direct marketing' has already happened but with less than 100% takeup; we can attempt to post on here in such a way as to improve our search hit rate (I've asked about how you actually do that on another thread); are we in a position to exchange links with other sympathetic low carb sites? Just gently idling here ...

zand wrote:I agree with all of your most recent post Eddie and I'm not worried about upsetting people, well those who deserve it anyway.  I am worried about the very many diabetics suffering because of bad dietary advice and it's for this reason that I would dearly love this forum to be a huge success and really grow in the not too distant future.  The advice here is fantastic.  I want newbies to feel welcome here and to see that what we want to do is to help people improve their health.  I admire your passion Eddie, thank you so much for what you do.  You're one of life's good guys.  We all know that here.  

Thank you Zand for the kind words, but for sure I have never been exceptional in any way. There are some very nice and clever people posting on this forum, no names no pack drill. Also, a very wide range of experience between the members. We have just to stay patient and keep posting, the forum will grow, very big membership numbers are not the be and end all. Give me a few good friends rather than the fair weather variety any day of the week. I retire at the end of the year and will put a lot more effort in. One thing's for sure is most of the members here are having some fun and enjoying the place, there is a lot more to diabetes control than raw numbers. Depression is a very big factor for diabetics for obvious reasons, so let's keep the place light on most of the threads.

Thank you to you and all the members who are sticking with the place, we are making a difference.

Regards Eddie

My uncle was a Type 2 diabetic. He was a wonderful man; one of those rare life and soul type men. Our family is filled with great stories about him. I've got a photo of him in the 70's dancing on a table in a Greek restaurant. My favourite story was him phoning my Aunt to say after a night out that he's bring some friends home for a nightcap and arriving back with half of Deep Purple who he'd somehow got talking to/drinking with.

Anyway, when he was diagnosed his doctor said take these tablets and see me every 12 months. That was the only advice he got. So that's what he did. He died of a heart attack on Christmas Day at the end of the 90's.

It was before I saw the light about diabetes and carbohydrate so I couldn't help him.

That 'advice' killed him and I so wish I'd known then what I know now; he might still be causing trouble in the bars of the West End if I had.

Best

Dillinger

Dillinger wrote:My uncle was a Type 2 diabetic. He was a wonderful man; one of those rare life and soul type men. Our family is filled with great stories about him. I've got a photo of him in the 70's dancing on a table in a Greek restaurant. My favourite story was him phoning my Aunt to say after a night out that he's bring some friends home for a nightcap and arriving back with half of Deep Purple who he'd somehow got talking to/drinking with.

Anyway, when he was diagnosed his doctor said take these tablets and see me every 12 months. That was the only advice he got. So that's what he did. He died of a heart attack on Christmas Day at the end of the 90's.

It was before I saw the light about diabetes and carbohydrate so I couldn't help him.

That 'advice' killed him and I so wish I'd known then what I know now; he might still be causing trouble in the bars of the West End if I had.

Best

Dillinger

If only time travel was possible so you and a few other folks here could go back and maybe change fate for your departed family members that succumbed to these unnecessary complications but sadly I realise that can't happen at present so I guess all any of us can do is to keep on spreading the low carb message in the hope that one day scenarios like this are only the exception and not the rule when it comes to diabetes management and outcomes...Your Uncle sounded a pretty cool guy Dillinger and I'm sorry for your families loss.

Best regards

Paul

awesome posts Eddie

i have a similar story with my dad, he was diagnosed t2, i knew nothing about it, he was given a meter and told to test once a week and carry on as normal, eat cake, drink everyday etc as long as his numbers didnt go above 11 it was fine to carry on as usual, died at 67,

am i bitter? do i blame every person giving out stupid advice for his death and the subsequent loneliness suffered by mum? yes, i hold everyone giving out dangerous advice (my opinion) on forums personally responsible.

low carbing is so obviously correct, i respect the fact that it dosent suit all but not the fact that "care givers" either havent looked into the "cure" for the t2 diabetes epidemic or blindly follow the guidelines, these people are clever enough to go through medical school and put themselves in that position of trust, but they cant spend a night on the internet listening to what works for us? thats all it took for me to learn it was the way to go or at very least was an extremely interesting idea and make me want to know more about it, i cant read a damn book, what is their excuse?

Great post Andy.

That's the thing; stupidity cannot be met with silence. If it is then we are as complicit as those giving out the stupid advice.

Paul - thanks! The fact that my uncle's diabetes story is so similar to so many other's is the real tragedy. If it were a handful it would be an outrage, because it is so many it is a statistic. Just goes to show that diabetes is progressive and there's nothing you can do! Well, bollocks to that!

Best

Dillinger

Andy, Dillinger, it's stories like yours that makes us give up so much of our free time trying to spread the word. Yes, we get knock backs and insults but if we could save one persons mum or day, it's been worth it.

I agree with all the above and thoughts about the nhs. i may sound nasty but l wish t2 on all dr and dn and dieticians who have not helped those in their care...l bet they come here and dcuk and learn what to do and make sure they get glucostix.
l thought that l would be banned for copying and pasting the link for Kev and the fact l copied his life story over, so shocked l wasn't. I do not go there much since here opened and l have read what goes on l find it difficult. l pop over and read do the occasional post.