Type 2 diabetes affects about 1.5 million Australians and there is no cure. The good news is that by doing a simple test, people at risk of developing diabetes can make changes to their lifestyle, which can delay or even prevent the onset of diabetes. The Life! Taking Action on Diabetes course is for these, at risk, people.
Kerrie Beitzel had been concerned about her size, her sleeping patterns and her energy levels for some time. But it was only after seeing the Type 2 diabetes prevention TV advert that she looked into assessing her risk. The advert features a middle aged woman swimming laps in a pool. She emerges from the water to reveal that the lower half of her right leg is missing. The voice over says ‘Don’t be the type to leave it too late. If you’re over 50 and overweight call 13 RISK.’ Kerrie made the call straight away.
‘To be an amputee would be shocking and I have a choice in the matter. This is completely in my control,’ says Kerrie.
Kerrie then took the Diabetes Risk Test. It is available on the website at www.diabetesrisk.org.au or can be sent free of charge. The test involves answering 10 simple questions and takes a short time to complete. Kerrie soon found out that she was at risk of developing type 2 diabetes, as she suspected. A doctor’s appointment confirmed the results.
‘It was not a matter of if, it was a matter of when,’ Kerrie says.
Type 2 diabetes is serious. People with diabetes are at risk of developing a range of severe complications including heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, blindness and amputation. The lifestyle choices that can prevent or delay the onset of diabetes are covered in the Life! Taking Action on Diabetes course. The course runs over six sessions and is run by specially trained staff, including dietitians and exercise professionals. The groups are small and there is lots of individual attention. Together with a facilitator, participants develop a plan for physical activity and healthy eating. Many people think they can do it on their own, but research shows that with a supportive group environment you are more likely to be successful. An hour a fortnight to live a longer healthier life is worth it.
As it happened there was a Life! course starting the very day Kerrie rang. ‘I’ll take it, I’ll take it!’ she said. ‘From the next day I started to eat better,’ Kerrie says.
‘When you’re younger it’s all about appearance, appearance, appearance. But it’s gone beyond what I look like now – it’s the way I feel.’
Kerrie felt so low that she was thinking of missing a close friend’s 50th birthday celebration, even though she had already booked her flight to Queensland. ‘It took so much courage just to get on the plane,’ she said later. ‘If I hadn’t started the course, I would not have got to that party.’
Kerrie says she’s glad she didn’t wait any longer to start the Life! course, ‘because that would have been more of my life wasted.’
Signing up for the Life! Taking Action on Diabetes course, has put Kerrie right on track for a longer, happier and healthier life.
Call 13RISK (13 7475) or visit www.diabetesrisk.org.au for more information.
