Vaughn Harper – Divabetic

Ever since last week’s Luther Vandross Tribute podcast I’ve been listening nonstop to Luther’s ballads and several other of the ‘Quiet Storm’ radio favorites. Songs like Anita Baker’s ‘Sweet Love’ , Meli‘sa Morgan’s ‘Do Me Baby’ and Luther’s ‘Dance with My Father’ are inspiring me to discuss the health risks related diabetes ‘after dark’.

Dead in Bed Syndrome (DIB) describes the sudden unexplained deaths of young people with type 1 diabetes. The syndrome is characterized as when someone with insulin dependent diabetes has gone to bed seemingly perfectly fine and has been found dead in an undisturbed bed.

Clinical reports strongly suggest that nocturnal hypoglycemia (which also occurs in people living with type 2 diabetes) is a likely prerequisite of the event, but that the death is sudden and probably caused by cardiac arrhythmia.

Nocturnal hypoglycemia is a low blood sugar that occurs overnight while you are asleep. It is common to sleep through a low blood sugar when it occurs during sleep.

You many be asking why doesn’t the person experiencing nocturnal hypoglycemia wake up?

There reason may be the phenomenon of hypoglycemic unawareness, which is defined as a hypoglycemic episode without warning symptoms of the decreasing blood glucose level. Most often, this is quite asymptomatic and the person does not wake up with hypoglycemic symptoms. Often the glucose value returns to normal or even high in the morning (so called Somogyi phenomenon) so this pattern is difficult to discover without taking nighttime tests every now and then

What can cause Nocturnal Hypoglycemia?

One cause could be taking the wrong type of insulin before going to bed. For example, if a large dose of bedtime insulin (not uncommon in puberty/prepuberty) is replaced with a similar dose of regular or rapid-acting insulin, this will lower the blood glucose considerably and could presumably trigger a severe hypoglycemic reaction which in turn could be further complicated by cardiac arrhythmia.

What can be done to avoid this from happening?

Checking your blood sugars before going to bed. Discuss with your health care provider a safe blood glucose target for bedtime. Many people feel comfortable if their blood glucose is at least 100 mg/dL before going to sleep.

If you use pen injectors, make sure the pen for your bedtime insulin looks and feels quite different from the one you use for daytime meal doses (not just another color that may be difficult to observe in the dark). If you use syringes and vials, store daytime and bedtime insulin in different places. When mixing insulin, be extra careful not to take the often higher bedtime dose of the wrong type.

If you like to exercise at night make sure to check your blood sugars before going to bed. Remember to decrease the bedtime dose after more strenuous exercise, especially if you do not exercise regularly.

If you have problems with nighttime hypoglycemia, ask your diabetes team for a continuous glucose monitoring device that may help you to detect nighttime glycemia patterns and help adjusting your insulin doses to avoid this.

Did you know that both legendary New York City disc jockey Vaughn Harper and Luther Vandross suffered strokes related to type 2 diabetes? Vaughn Harper was referred to as the architect of the Quiet Storm and Luther’s ‘House Is Not A Home’ was part of his blueprint by design.

The ‘Quiet Storm’, characterized by an enticing mix of unabashedly romantic songs, often fused with jazzy overtones, mellow dynamics, slow tempos, and relaxed rhythms.

We’re celebrating Luther Vandross, his musical legacy and raising awareness for diabetes health-related complications (such as stroke) on this Luther Vandross Tribute podcast.

In the years since Luther’s passing, one constant has remained to define his life and musical success: the voice. Like any great singer of the past 100 years, Luther Vandross’ voice and distinct singing style led to not only monumental success, but an instant recognition when you hear him singing–through your stereo, car radio, on TV or in a movie. Coupled with that voice was Luther’s unique ability to write and sing about love and the shared emotions we all feel in that search for and enjoyment of love. Through his songs, for the last two generations Luther Vandross became a staple in the most joyous moments of people’s lives.

Featured guests include Patricia Addie-Gentle RN, CDE, Luther percussionist Steve Kroon, Luther vocalists Tawatha Agee and Pat Lacy, Luther historian Leon Petrossian, members of ‘The Luther Re-Lives Experience’, friends and fans.

Throughout the podcast we will be featuring selected songs from the album entitled ‘Luther Vandross’ courtesy of SONY Music.

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Colonel Abrams joins a long list of men from the R & B and Hip Hop music communities who died of diabetes health-related complications this year. The list includes Phife Dawg (‘A Tribe Called Quest’), Prince Be (‘P.M. Dawn’), and radio personalities Doug Banks and Vaughn Harper.

Diabetes is 60% more common in black Americans than in white Americans. Blacks are up to 2.5 times more likely to suffer a limb amputation and up to 5.6 times more likely to suffer kidney disease than other people with diabetes. Diabetes is also a significant contributor to erectile dysfunction. Because men are less likely to engage in the health care system, primary and secondary prevention efforts need to be implemented in culturally appropriate, male-oriented venues.

Last year, Colonel Abrams was reportedly homeless and suffering from diabetes, and a crowd-funding effort by fans and friends was launched to get him back on his feet.

Colonel Abrams stated in a video: “As most of you may or may not know, a lot of recording artist don’t have medical coverage or benefits.” He went on to say… “The Colonel is very ill with no permanent place of his own to live at this time and limited financial resources.”

The Detroit-born, Manhattan raised singer began playing both piano and guitar while still quite young. By the mid 1970s he became part of the band Heavy Impact. But it was nearly a decade later that Abrams really made a name for himself with the big 1985 hit “Trapped”. Colonel Abrams also sang on several tracks that are considered to have laid the groundwork for what is now considered global dance music including the songs, “How Soon We Forget” and “Not Gonna Let.”

According to Soul Tracks: “By the mid 1970s he became part of the band Heavy Impact. But it was nearly a decade later that Colonel Abrams really made a name for himself with the big hit ‘Music Is the Answer.’ It began a string of dance hits that capitalized on the electronic sounds that were popular in the mid ’80s … Abrams continued to chart on the Dance and R&B charts into the mid-’90s, and performed around the world into the new century. He also formed his own Colonel Records and released music sporadically through the early part of this decade.”

The rate of diabetes among people who are homeless is on the rise along with diabetes health-related deaths. People who are homeless don’t have the finances to afford to monitor their blood sugar levels on a regular basis and healthy food choices.

Jan Boyd, a registered nurse who works with Withers on Operation Safety Net said, “People on the street don’t usually seek medical care unless the symptoms are making them uncomfortable. With diabetes, discomfort comes too late.”

And life expectancy for a person without a home is just 45-49 years, according to a study done by the National Health Care for the Homeless Council. The NHCHC also reports that the number one cause of death among the homeless population is complications related to chronic conditions like diabetes!

Dr. Jim Withers co-founded Operation Safety Net, which is part of the Pittsburgh Mercy Health System in Pittsburg, PA. Operation Safety Net provides healthcare to people living on the street, but Withers describes it differently: “The program is providing people with hope,” he says.

“Our philosophy is to treat people where they are,” said Withers, who has been treating homeless people since 1992. Operation Safety Net has helped transition more than 850 chronically ill homeless people into permanent housing since it started, and many of those people have been living with diabetes.

We have experienced so many diabetes health-related deaths in the urban radio and music industry. It is my goal to find a way to share these stories as a way to teach today’s music fans about diabetes on our free monthly podcasts. If you have any suggestions let me know.

LISTEN: Diabetes Late Nite inspired by A Tribe Called Quest. Phife Dawg, born Malik Taylor, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in May of 1990. Experiencing constant thirst and bathroom visits, his grandmother, a nurse, tested him for diabetes after a performance in Connecticut. Initially, Phife admitted he did not take his diagnosis seriously, and maintained his same lifestyle.

“It’s really a sickness,” Taylor said in Beats, Rhymes & Life, Michael Rapaport’s candid 2011 documentary on the group. “Like straight-up drugs. I’m just addicted to sugar.”

Phife’s initial resistance to treatment made it necessary for him to go on dialysis followed by a kidney transplant in 2008. This past March he died at age 45.

Tag: Vaughn Harper

The Quiet Storm, Diabetes & Nocturnal Hypoglycemia

House and R &B vocalist Colonel Abrams Died at Age 67