it’s hard in a world where looks are a prize to value yourself if you’re not the right size. For chubby young girls it’s especially true And lots of the other kids will bully you.
If Mom calls you “Dumplin’”, and you hate that name, It may be a reason you’re feeling ashamed. Some people will tell you that you look OK, But deep down inside there’s a price that you pay.
It’s sadness and lonely, and unworthiness That causes you pain and gives you distress. It’s being alone when the girls are all dating And feeling ashamed because boys aren’t relating.
It’s trying to smile when you don’t feel alright. It’s waiting for phone calls on Saturday night. It’s hoping you’ll get all the cute boys’ attention, But hearing the ridicule and condescension.
It’s when you decide for yourSELF that you’re fine, That you can begin to turn water to wine. It’s when YOU feel comfortable in your own skin That you can begin on your journey to win.
No, it’s not easy, to want to conform
Or made to believe that you’re outside the norm.
But if you’re like Dumplin’, you’ll rise to your best
And you will decide you will not be suppressed.
Everyone’s different and all are worthwhile
And all of us have individual style.
So get out on that runway and strut all your stuff
Don’t let anyone tell you that you’re not enough!
Skinny or chubby, plump or obese,
Accept what you’re given – that’s where you find peace.
In a new study published today, a team of researchers from the New York University School of Medicine have unlocked a molecular mechanism controlling weight gain and loss in mice: a protein that shuts down the animals’ ability to burn fat in times of bodily stress, including when dieting or overeating. This discovery might hold the key to understanding why it’s so hard for humans to lose weight, and even harder to keep it off.
The new findings contradict the idea that weight loss is just calorie deficits and willpower. “Weight loss is very, very difficult,” says the study’s lead researcher, Ann Marie Schmidt, an endocrinologist from the New York University School of Medicine. “Only by studying the good things, the bad things, and how sometimes things that were meant to be good can go awry can we figure out the big picture and how to safely make people’s lives healthier and better.”
Win $500 Gift Basket & Enter our Cutest Dog Contest in support of Divabetic’s newest outreach program, Collar Greens Health & Wellness Day at Central Farm Markets in North Virginia on September 29, 2019. This free outreach program aims to educate both dogs and dog owners about diabetes and their risks for heart disease. MORE INFO
Find out what it’s like to live with diabetes for 50 years! Catherine L. shares her experience on August’s Diabetes Late Nite with music from P!nk
Heading into our tenth year of podcasting, Divabetic declares this to be the year of ‘the Diva’! We’ll be featuring music from only DIVAS on our free monthly Diabetes Late Nite podcasts for the next 12 months courtesy of SONY Music.
Enjoy music from LaBelle, Celine Dion, Ann Margaret, Phyllis Hyman and more to lift your spirits and motivate you to live well with diabetes. Between your favorite diva musical selections, the happy healthcare host, Mr. Divabetic will interview Certified Diabetes Educators CDE’s), Best-Selling Authors, Beauty & Fashion experts, Chefs, Celebrities and passionate people living with diabetes.
Why Divas? “Divas have always been the bedrock of Divabetic’s glamorous approach to educating people about diabetes,” says Max ‘Mr. Divabetic’ Szadek. “My former boss, Luther Vandross loved the divas too.”
Divabetic’s podcast library contains 150 podcasts averaging over 1,000 listeners per podcast. All podcasts are available on demand for free at i-Tunes, and Blog Talk radio. Divabetic’s podcasts were mentioned in Diabetes Forecast Magazine’s Recommended Diabetes Podcasts List in January 2019.
Divabetic® (divabetic.org) is a national
nonprofit diabetes outreach organization committed to changing attitudes in
people at risk, affected by and living with diabetes. We strive to encourage
prevention, early action and above all, education.
Luther Vandross
Divabetic® was inspired by the late R & B legend, Luther Vandross, and created and founded by his long-time assistant, Max Szadek. Divabetic®, a combination of the word ‘diabetic’ with the letter ‘V’ inserted for Vandross, evokes feelings of power and the positive attitude associated with the great DIVAS Luther loved like Patti LaBelle.
Kale has been a trendy health food for a while. It’s so trendy that people including cooking hacks like Mr. Divabetic are adding it into any food, including DESSERT!
With more nutritional value than spinach, kale may help improve blood glucose management in diabetes, lower the risk of cancer, reduce blood pressure, and help prevent the development of asthma. The fiber and antioxidants in kale also may offer protection against diabetes. Studies have shown that a high intake of fiber may lower blood glucose levels in people with type-1 diabetes and people with type-2 diabetes may see improved blood sugar, lipids, and insulin levels according to Medical News Today.
But can one of the world’s healthiest foods taste heavenly in a dessert?
“While you might not think of the fibrous leafy greens as essential to dessert dishes, kale has the unique ability to lend cakes a feel-good dose of nutrients without sacrificing taste or flavor,” writes Jennifer En for mashed.com
Why Kale & Chocolate Make A Good Combination!
Chocolate is incredibly rich and bold, which makes it the perfect ingredient to pair with kale when you don’t necessarily want the veggie flavor to overpower the chocolate one. If you’re curious about what kale and chocolate taste like together, try this recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie for kale brownies.
Chocolate Covered Katies
“It’s easy, streamlined, and completely winning where flavor is concerned. Get your chocolate on,” writes Jennifer En for mashed.com
Don’t let incorporating greens into your desserts be an excuse to overindulge. It’s easy to convince yourself that you can enjoy more sweets and feel better about yourself in the process because you’re adding in extra nutrients between spoonfuls of sugar. An indulgence on one day doesn’t matter when looking at a week or a month.
Mr. Divabetic loves to infuse his desserts with healthy doses of vegetables. Unfortunately his lack of cookings skills and questionable good taste doesn’t always make for a winning combination. In this year’s Diabetes Mystery podcast, “Gingerbread Men Prefer Blondes”his original Kale Hot Cocoa recipe turns everyone’s favorite leafy green vegetable into something downright lethal!
Divabetic presents their 6th Annual Diabetes Mystery Podcast, “Gingerbread Men Prefer Blondes,”on Tuesday, September 10, 2019, 6 -7 PM, EST. This diabetes mystery caper takes place at the fictitiously decadent world-renowned Gingerbread Men Cookie Baking Competition in New York’s Central Park Zoo. Mr. Divabetic’s culinary misadventures continue in this year’s escapade as he enters the competition with headless cookies and pureed kale hot cocoa for the judges to sample. As if this dreadful combination wasn’t bad enough to land him at the bottom of the throwdown, his mother, Mama Rose Marie, is accused of poisoning one of the celebrity judges. Things go from bad to worse when the snake phobic Mr. Divabetic hears about the giant python’s escape.
Now, the happy healthcare host must decide to face his fear of snakes and recipe rejection or throw in his apron and risk getting caught up in another murder investigation. Can Mr. Divabetic and his team of amateur sleuths hunt down the real killer and get Mama Rose Marie out of jail? Will he be the next murder victim? Can he ever create an edible recipe?
The cast of Gingerbread Men Prefer Blondes features Mama Rose Marie, Best-Selling Author Tonya Kappes, the Charlie’s Angels of Outreach (Patricia Addie-Gentle RN, CDE and MaryAnn Nicolay BA, DTR), Asha Brown, Chef Robert Lewis, Seveda Williams, Catherine Schuller, Wendy Radford, Dave Jones and Lorraine Brooks.
Throughout this podcast we will be featuring music from the original Broadway cast recording of ‘Gentlemen Prefer Blondes’ courtesy of SONY MUSIC.
Paula Abdul took a tumble during her concert on stage at the Billboard Music Awards but we’re still ‘head over heels’ for the superstar.
The former “American Idol” judge also fell head-first into the crowd at the Hard Rock Live in Biloxi, Mississippi as she sang her 1991 hit “The Promise of a New Day.”
“She did not seem hurt at the time of the fall and still finished like a champ,” the fan who posted the video told People. “She stated she was a dancer, and falls and drops she has gotten used to over the years.”
Paula Abdul wowed the crowd at the Billboard Awards 2019 and proved her age isn’t stopping her from performing at her best.
Paula’s dancers had her performing back flip in midair even though she suffers from chronic pain . She was injured as a 17-year-old cheerleader. In 2004, she was diagnosed with reflex sympathetic dystrophy, which causes severe pain. Later, cortical integrative therapy was able to help manage the symptoms.
RSD/CRPS goes by many names: reflex sympathetic dystrophy, reflex neurovascular dystophy, complex regional pain syndrome, hand-foot atrophy, Sudeck’s atrophy, amplified musculoskeletal pain syndrome, and causalgia (to name a few common ones).
So what is RSD/CRPS? To start, it is the most painful medical condition known to man at a 45/50 on the McGill Pain Scale. Because it is so painful and it is hard to find good doctors to treat this condition, CRPS has a grim nickname: the “suicide disease.” We lose too many RSD/CRPS warriors because the pain is just so unbearable. I personally have lost several friends to the disease, and I’m always fearing who will go next. Many people with RSD/CRPS have been to the deep dark place, where they just want to escape the pain, but not everyone climbs out of it.
Increased back pain has been reported in people with diabetes, but the cause is unknown. People with diabetes are more likely to report back and neck pain, according to a new study. However, it is not clear whether diabetes is the cause reports Diabetes.co.uk.
The study’s authors suggest looking at the impact of medications, such as insulin, which are known to affect blood flow and muscle mass, and may affect the functioning of the musculoskeletal system.
Diabetes Late Nite Inspired by Phyllis Hyman
We’re talking about ‘Diabetes, Sleep & Mental Health Issues’ on Diabetes Late Nite with musical inspiration from the iconic Phyllis Hyman on Tuesday, August 13, 2019, 6 PM, EST.
R & B superstar Phyllis Hyman was a sensational singer-songwriter and actress. Deep-voiced and statuesque, Phyllis Hyman sang with a life-affirming energy and emotional intensity found in few other female vocalists.
Unfortunately Phyllis Hyman committed suicide, leaving a suicide note behind in 1995. Part of the note read “I’m tired. I’m tired. Those of you that I love know who you are. May God bless you.” It has been reported that she suffered from bi-polar disorder and depression and had a history of substance abuse which involved alcohol and cocaine. Who knows what accomplishments she would have achieved if she had lived longer?
We’re talking about ‘Diabetes, Sleep & Mental HealthIssues’ on Diabetes Late Nite with musical inspiration from Phyllis Hyman scheduled for Tuesday, August 13, 2019, 6 PM, EST. TUNE IN
Phyllis Hyman was a sensational singer-songwriter and actress. Deep-voiced and statuesque, Phyllis Hyman sang with a life-affirming energy and emotional intensity found in few other female vocalists.
Though her uncompromising principles put her at odds with the mainstream music business, she worked consistently for 20 years—from the moment that jazz drummer Norman Connors discovered her in a New York club in 1975 to when she took her life in June 1995
Phyllis Hyman committed suicide, leaving a note behind in 1995. Part of the note read “I’m tired. I’m tired. Those of you that I love know who you are. May God bless you.” It has been reported that she suffered from bi-polar disorder and depression and had a history of substance abuse which involved alcohol and cocaine. Who knows what accomplishments she would have achieved if she had lived longer?
If you’re struggling with some tough emotions or feeling lonely, don’t hesitate to call the Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
We’re talking to the owner of the World’s Most Famous Diabetes Alert Dog, Tabouli Gallagher, Elizabeth Gallagher on August’sDiabetes Late Nite podcast with musical inspiration from Phyllis Hyman scheduled for August 13, 2019, 6 PM, EST. TUNE IN
Diabetic Alert Dogs are trained to alert their owners in advance of low (hypoglycemia) or high (hyperglycemia) blood sugar levels before they become dangerous.
Tune in to find out how this service dog not only helps Elizabeth who is living with type 1 diabetes, happy and healthy but also inspired a series of children’s books, “Tabouli: The Story of a Heart-Driven Diabetes Alert Dog” by Matt Pelicano
Tabouli: The Story of a Heart-Driven Diabetes Alert Dog
Tabouli: The Story of a Heart-Driven Diabetes Alert Dog” Synopsis
Tabouli is a real-life diabetes alert dog who lives with his owner, 13-year old Elizabeth Vaughan, in Greenville, South Carolina. Striving to overcome his tragic beginnings, Tabouli’s love and devotion toward Elizabeth enable him to surmount challenges and obstacles, prejudice and doubt in order to become a certified service dog. When tragedy strikes, Tabouli must find his way out of the shadows of grief which threaten to undermine all he has accomplished. Deciding always to follow the adventure, this heart-driven dog is surprised to find within himself a greatness he never expected. Recommended by world-renown dog trainer, Debby Kay, this book “so perfectly captures the spirit and journey of a remarkable service dog.”
This FREE diabetes outreach event features wellness education for pets and pet owners alike! Enjoy Dog Photo Contest, Market Food Tours with healthcare professionals, Live Cooking Demonstrations, Family & Dogs Scavenger Hunts, Amazing Service Dog Demonstrations, Live Music, Veterinarian Talks and more!
“There is no indication that A1C levels in the registry as a whole have improved despite an increase in the use of insulin pumps and CGM’s (continuous glucose monitors),” said the authors of the T1D Exchange Clinic Network’s “State of Type 1 Diabetes Management and Outcomes from the T1D Exchange in 2016-2018″.
The majority of both youth and adults surveyed aren’t meeting A1C goals defined by the American Diabetes Association.
The A1C test result reflects your average blood sugar level for the past two to three months. Specifically, the A1C test measures what percentage of your hemoglobin — a protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen — is coated with sugar (glycated). The higher your A1C level, the poorer your blood sugar control and the higher your risk of diabetes complications.
While much of the report can be seen as disheartening, there are some great takeaways – CGM and insulin pump users tend to have lower A1Cs and less hypoglycemia, suggesting the need for improved access to these devices in the type 1 community.
Diabetes Late Nite podcast with music from Ricky Martin
We’re talking about ‘Diabetes & Pride’ on June’s Diabetes Late Nite podcast with musical inspiration from Ricky Martin.
This year marks the 50th anniversary of Stonewall Uprising (June 29, 1969). It is widely considered to be the single most important event leading to the gay liberation movement.
Since Ricky Martin came out in 2010, he’s been a prominent voice for LGBT rights both in the U.S. and in his native Puerto Rico. Ricky Martin said, “I just wanna be free,” upon receiving GLAAD’s Vito Russo Award, which honors gay entertainers who promote equal rights. Martin opened up his life to Vanity Fair in its April 2012 issue and spoke candidly about his twins, Matteo and Valentino, and his longtime partner, Carlos Gonzalez.
As an openly gay man, Mr. Divabetic is honored to shine the spotlight on members from the LGBTQ+ community living with diabetes. Guests include Stephen Bernstein, Greg Rubin, Maria Salazar, Maya James and the Charlie’s Angels of Outreach.
Diabetes Late Nite is a fast-paced, full-filled hour of diabetes education and wellness advice that encourages listeners to “laugh a little, learn a lot.”
Extreme heat can cause both unexpected highs and lows in blood-sugar levels. The heat can also cause dives in blood-glucose levels. As the temperature rises, the body’s blood vessels expand, speeding up insulin absorption and increasing the risk of hypoglycemia. Here are some tips to help you beat the heat this Summer:
1. Protect Your Self-Care Gear
Keep your insulin pump covered and your insulin cool! Heat makes insulin less effective and can cause pumps to malfunction. There are cooling cases specifically for insulin that can help you manage your supply.
2. Drink Plenty of Water!
Most experts agree when it comes to hydration, water is the best option for people with diabetes. That’s because it won’t raise your blood sugar levels. High blood sugar levels can cause dehydration. Drinking enough water can help your body eliminate excess glucose through urine.
Summer Squeeze Fruit-Infused Water
Bored with the taste of water? Then why not make some fruit infused water? Fruit infused water is water that has been infused with fruits, vegetables or herbs. Drinking infused water may help you and your family with weight loss by replacing drinks high in sugar and calories.
Toast the warm weather with this minty, berry (and sugar-free!) twist on lemonade that’s one of our favorites: ‘Summer Squeeze’. Ingredients: Strawberry, Lemon, Mint
Diabetes advocate turned reluctant amateur sleuth, Mr. Divabetic finally takes the plunge and ventures into a new career as a healthy caterer. With the help of his co-workers and nosy Italian mother, he heads for Coney Island to cater his first party aboard a yacht for his former swim coach, Ted Rockow. But his nautical soiree quickly capsizes when the guest of honor is found swimming with the fishes. What it an accident or foul play? Now Mr. Divabetic’s grilling Burlesque dancers, a lifeguard lothario and some sequined mermaids, all intent on keeping their secrets buried deep within the sand.
Can Mr. Divabetic prove Coach’s death was a murder, not an accident? Or will he end up floating out to sea? Will he sink or swim? Tune in to find out if he can solve the murder of his former swim coach with the help of his friends, some sassy mermaids and a cooky fortune teller. Along the way to revealing the identity of the murderer he uncovers expert tips for diabetes self-care during the Summer months. USA Today Best-Selling Author, Tonya Kappes, Asha Brown, Catherine Schuller, Chef Robert Lewis aka ‘The Happy Diabetic’, Seveda Williams, Patricia Addie-Gentle RN, CDE, MaryAnn Horst Nicolay, Mama Rose Marie and Poet Lorraine Brooks help the fruit suit clad sleuth in this seaside adventure. This year’s mystery podcast features music from the original cast recording of ‘Gypsy’ courtesy of SONY Music.
A recent study in Diabetologia found that 21% of people initially diagnosed with type 2 diabetes after the age of 30 and treated with insulin actually had type 1 diabetes as reported in diaTribe. A striking 38% of those with late-onset type 1 did not immediately receive insulin – putting them at high risk of diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA). Of those with late-onset type 1 diabetes, 85% required insulin within one year of diagnosis. Indeed, if insulin treatment is required within three years of diagnosis with type 2 diabetes, there is a high likelihood that a type 1 diagnosis was missed.
What’s it like to live with type 1 diabetes for 50 years?
Catherine Lawrence shares her experience living with type 1 diabetes for 50 years on Divabetic’s 9th Year Anniversary Diabetes Late Nite podcast with musical inspiration from P!nk.
P!nk’s new album, Hurts 2B Human features the singer teaming up with Chris Stapleton, Khalid and more on her passionately confessional eighth LP.
Pink sings “I abhor reality” on the sugary dance song “Can We Pretend” featuring Cash Cash. But when she digs into what’s getting her down, it’s the most brazen and heartbroken she’s ever sounded. On the Sia-cowritten “Courage,” Pink’s voice swings up the scale on its own chandelier. “I don’t have to do this perfectly,” she sings. “Happy” (co-written by Teddy Geiger and Sasha Sloan) reminds us she is also the patron saint of the Missundaztood: “Can somebody find me a pill to make me unafraid of me/ Maybe I’m just scared to be happy,” she sings.
Guests include Beyond Type 2’s T’ara Smith, Catherine Lawrence , Dr. Sara (Mandy) Reece PHARMD, CDE, BC-ADM, BCACP, FAADE, Poet Lorraine Brooks, Glamazon Beauty owner Kim Baker, and the Charlie’s Angels of Outreach. Hosted by the happiest health care “MC,” Max “Mr. Divabetic” Szadek.
