Diabetes Epidemic

Hi friends,

Some of you know that I was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes about 5 weeks ago. I had a scare when the doctor told me my blood sugar was at an all time high of 11. The normal range is between 4-7.  I immediately got on Metformin medication to help me process insulin and began to cut out some of my sugary snacks and soda pops like Coca-Cola.  My doctor told me I could drink diet soda but I cannot stand the diet sweeteners. Besides that I've heard for a long time about the dangers of diet sweeteners.

Dr. Janet Hull has this to say about the dangers of one common diet sweetener, Aspartame.

 The dangers of aspartame poisoning have been a well-guarded secret since the 1980s. The research and history of aspartame is conclusive as a cause of illness and toxic reactions in the human body. Aspartame is a dangerous chemical food additive, and its use during pregnancy and by children is one of the greatest modern tragedies of all.

Why haven't you heard about this before? Partly because the diet industry is worth trillions of American dollars to corporations, and they want to protect their profits by keeping the truth behind aspartame's dangers hidden from the public. When NutraSweet® was introduced for the 'second' time in 1981, a diet craze revolutionized America's eating protocols and a well-oiled money machine was set into motion changing modern lifestyles. After more than twenty years of aspartame use, the number of its victims is rapidly piling up, and people are figuring out for themselves that aspartame is at the root of their health problems. Patients are teaching their doctors about this nutritional peril, and they are healing themselves with little to no support from traditional medicine.

You can read more about aspartame and it's effects on the body on Dr. Hull's website here. You can also read about all the other sweeteners here.  There is also a good Australian summary about diet sweeteners and other food additives here. The Australian page made me realize that there is a lot of hidden aspartame in foods we consider healthy. I will have to investigate this further in relation to my own diet. If any of you are interested in how aspartame became legal if it is so bad for you, you can read a time line here.

Anyway, I digress, my issue is not really that I add sugar to my foods. For example, I do not add sugar to my cereal unless it is slow cooked porridge or cream of wheat, nor do I add sugar or honey to tea or coffee.  I also don't add sugar to fruit like freshly cut strawberries even though most strawberries in the store really have little sweetness due to forced growth and shipping before they are ripened.  However, I still had sugar in my diet where it has been added to foods like:

1. regular soda pop, mostly coca cola and ready sweetened drinks
2. ice cream
3. snacks like ready made cakes, cookies and other baked goods
4. canned foods like beans
5. ketchup and other condiments.

For some time now, even before the diabetes diagnosis, I have in fact, radically cut back on all processed foods, and also on purchasing the items listed above. I eat more greens like kale, swiss chard, bok choy, broccoli, and multi-coloured vegetables (range of peppers, tomatoes, red and white onions, zucchini, carrots, etc.). I have also added more sweet potatoes to the diet, brown rice instead of white rice, eat only multi-grain bread and sprouted grain breads at home. I bake my own snacks like banana bread and cookies as much as I can and try to limit eating out in restaurants for health and budgetary reasons.

Despite all these changes I had gained quite a lot of weight since the fall due to previous illnesses/disabilities and an inability to move. I was also napping very frequently and for lengthy periods of time as I simply had no energy.  I was extremely fatigued all the time and more than that I felt exceedingly unwell.  I chalked it up to numerous health problems which I was already dealing with.  In desperation I got onto some herbal tinctures made up for me by a naturopathic doctor at the urging of a friend of mine. While these tinctures did work in terms of helping me feel better and less inclined to napping, I was still suffering. Now I am on the Metformin, exercising regularly (it helps that I don't need to nap every day, though some days are better than other days) and still making adjustments to the diet.

For the first two weeks after my diagnosis, I was afraid to eat anything. For the next few weeks, I ate whatever was available and not always what was the healthiest.  I did try very hard (and mostly succeeded) at not drinking coca cola or eating snack foods, sweet or otherwise.  I also cut out Creamo from my coffee. I've mostly stopped drinking coffee as a result or use whitener though if I look up the ingredients in that, I may have to cut it out as well. I have been drinking more milk. I use 1% milk and have been drinking that and using it for my cereals for some years now.  I have also been making my own ice tea drinks using real tea bags and sliced lemons mixed with a small bit of ice tea mix. I tend to like my drinks less sweet side so you can imagine how surprised I was when I learned that I had been drinking coca cola or equivalent soda pop, and that each can has anywhere from 10-12 teaspoons of sugar in it!  In addition to the dietary changes I started with an exercise class and swimming lessons as well as more walking. I would not be able to add this physical activity to my weekly routine if this were last Fall so I am thankful I can do it now.

Yesterday on American television, two shows: The Drs. and Oprah with guest Dr. Oz talked about the epidemic of diabetes in America. 

The 2009 estimated population in the USA is just under 310 million people. There are 24 million diabetics in America and 57 million pre-diabetics.  Dr. Oz said that if the rate of diabetes in USA continues as it is now, it will bankrupt the American medical system. That's right! Bankrupt the system. That is a scary proposition.  Especially since millions more American people are supposed to benefit from recent changes to their health care system.   Doctors there also estimate that about 6 million people are walking around in USA who have diabetes but haven't yet been diagnosed. I think I got that number right, but you will hear it by clicking on the Oprah link above and listening to Dr. Oz.

Canada's estimated population for 2010 is just over 34 million people. I also read today that 1 out of every 10 Canadian people have been diagnosed with diabetes. That is a full 10 percent of us. I wonder how many are walking around without knowing they have this disease which has been dubbed the "silent killer"? The good news is that 90% of diabetes is preventable and reversible.

I didn't realize until I got a diagnosis of diabetes just how much there was to learn about coping with and managing the disease. Part of that is monitoring your blood sugar levels and you do that with a glucose monitor. I got mine today and measured my blood sugar with the assistance of the pharmacist at my doctor's office. It was a 6! That is fully 5 points less than it was a month ago and is now in the normal range.The pharmacist and student pharmacist were very happy and impressed.

I also borrowed this cookbook from the pharmacist to see what new recipes I can learn about that are good for my roommate and I.

If you would like to learn more about diabetes, please watch the videos on the links for The Drs. and Oprah above.

You can also read more
in Canada here.
in USA here.
in Australia here.
in South Africa here.
in Tanzania here.
in Kenya here.
in Norway here.
other EU Nations here.

Swimming Bags

My regular readers know I have started swimming lessons and exercise class that is geared for arthritis sufferers.

Swimming lessons started first but are only once a week, while exercise class is twice a week. I'm enjoying the swimming lessons more than the exercise class which is on land not in the water. My knee joint pain flares up with exercise on land and interferes with the walking I ordinarily do. I'm hoping this pain abates with time.  If it doesn't, I will start sitting on the chairs provided to do the exercises.

The swimming lessons seem much better for the joints because of the buoyancy of the water. After swimming lesson I might practice what I have learned before I go and sit in the warm whirlpool for about 20 minutes and soothe stiff neck and back muscles. After I cool off, I might have a quick cold water shower then go into the sauna.

These are two of the "blue" bags I've used to carry my towel and wet things after swimming. Both of them are lined with plastic.

First up is my horse bag. Mom gave this bag to me many years ago and the plastic inside is starting to peel off. I may try to line it myself when the lining is totally gone. I am not really a "horsey" gal but I really love this bag, especially the "blue horse". It has one zippered pocket inside for keys and change and a pocket on the outside for your cell phone.

Next up is my brilliant blue "batik" bag. It isn't really batik but has a batik like pattern on it. It has mesh pockets on both sides for your water bottles and a little zip bag inside to keep your change and keys.

The two bags together. You can see they are almost the same size.

It is amazing who I've been meeting at the swimming pool So far, I've talked to many of the women and in particular three stand out.

One woman is a former refugee from Vietnam. She originally lived in Japan but ended up coming to Canada with her family due to the high cost of living in Japan. She doesn't swim but likes to use the sauna. Then I met Marie, a pensioner who hails from Nova Scotia. She is a black woman and says people always think she came to Canada via the underground railway but she never even heard of the underground railway until people started asking her that! She is as afraid of the water as I am and had some amazing stories of near drownings in Yellowknife and in the Caribbean. She noted my swimming instructor's methods and wants to learn to swim from him also. The third lady is Nala. She came to Canada with her family over 40 years ago from Fiji. She only went to grade 4 and she asked for my help in ensuring her housing application was correctly submitted. I readily agreed. 

Nala was so thankful that she promptly shared her phone number and provided a standing invitation to her home for curry dinner sometime.  Now I really don't like to take payment for a good deed, but I would love to get to know her better so I may take her up on it when I have more time.

As you can see, I am enjoying the swimming lessons for more than the swimming. (I've met some interesting women in the exercise class too but there is less opportunity to talk with them before and after class).

Happy Blue Monday.

Click here for more Blue Monday posts from around the world.

Did you know it's International Mandela Day?

I just learned that it is the first Nelson Mandela International Day. That is simply awesome. I've long admired this great man of dignity and intellect. I hope you have an opportunity today to reflect on his many accomplishments and celebrate his 92nd birthday. Now here is the story I copied from Al Jazeera's news website.

News Africa

World celebrates Mandela Day

The increasingly frail Mandela will spend his birthday with his family
in Johannesburg [AFP]

The world is marking the first Nelson Mandela International Day to commemorate the birthday of South Africa's first black president, who turns 92 on Sunday.

The United Nations had last year agreed to commemorate Mandela's birthday every year to recognise the Nobel Peace Prize laureate's contribution to resolving conflicts and promoting race relations, human rights and reconciliation.

Ninety-two children aged from six to 12 from southern South Africa were flown courtesy of the national carrier to visit the ailing icon at his Johannesburg home on the eve of his birthday. They sang him a birthday song.
In a statement, Mandela's office quotes him as saying, "I like being with young children".

Revered figure

Mandela was jailed for 27 years by the country's white minority government for resisting apartheid rule.

On his release in 1990, he led negotiations with apartheid rulers, a process that culminated in his election as the country's first black president in 1994.

He stepped down as president in 1999, after serving one term in office and is still revered around the world for promoting peace and fighting against racism and HIV/Aids.

South Africa celebrated the 20th anniversary of Mandela's release from prison on February 11, a day credited with shaping the history of the country.

Jacob Zuma, the president of South Africa, is expected to address thousands of villagers at Mandela's birthplace Mvezo on Sunday.

"Mandela's 67 years of uninterrupted and selfless service to the people of South Africa and the world culminated in the birth of a new South Africa, united in diversity," Zuma said in a statement.

People around the globe have been urged to devote 67 minutes on Sunday to public service, to honour Mandela's 67 years of service.

Frugal Blue Monday & Ruby Tuesday

Well it is officially Monday and I've done it at last!  Made my own laundry detergent that is. I have had the ingredients of which there are few, for some months now but just never felt up to grating the bar soap that goes into. lol

So the other day I finally got a long desired purchase of a 10 cup food processor. I've wanted it to slice and chop vegetables mostly for salads and various things but I also want it for shredding up the bar soap for my detergent.  I got to use the processor today and  boy did it ever do a wonderful job of shredding up the soap for my home made laundry detergent. Sorry I didn't get a photo of it for you. I thought of taking pictures after I was well underway with the soap making exercise.

First off, there are many recipes for making your own laundry detergent on the internet. I used this website.
and this recipe:

INGREDIENTS:

 Hot water
1 cup Washing Soda
1/2 cup Borax

1  bar of Ivory soap

See the "blues" for Blue Monday

Grate the bar soap and add to a large saucepan with hot water. Stir over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted. Most recipes call for FelsNaptha and Zote soap but you can use Ivory soap or Sunlight bar soap if you are in Canada.

Fill a 10 gallon pail half full of hot water. Add the melted soap, Borax and Washing soda, stir well until all powder is dissolved. Top the pail up with more hot water.

I used a  nice ruby red bucket. Check out Ruby Tuesday here.

Use 1 cup per load, stirring soap before each use (will gel).

Total Cost for all the Ingredients:

I bought 2 kg. Washing Soda for $4.99  (Canadian)

One large bar of Ivory soap was $.79 cents (Canadian)

1 2kg. box of Borax is about $5.99 (Canadian).

Total: $11.77 (Canadian)

I used only one cup of washing soda and half a cup of Borax and the entire bar of Ivory soap. There is still enough Washing Soda and Borax for many more batches of soap. As I am not into calculating everything down to a science, I would simply guesstimate about 10-12 more batches of soap can be made with the remaining Washing Soda and probably double that for the Borax.

Approximate cost of making my batch of detergent: 

$.38-49 cents  worth of Washing Soda used

$.79 cents bar soap used

$.23 - $.28 cents worth of  Borax used

Total: $1.40 - $1.56 worth of ingredients for 10 gallons of detergent or

14-16 cents per gallon.
This works out to approximately 160 loads of laundry (16 cups in each gallon x 10 and you use 1 cup of detergent per load) or 1.4 or 1.6 cents per load.

I've filled 6 empty liquid laundry detergent bottles which are just under 2 litres each and still  have half a bucket of detergent.

I didn't calculate the water cost or the electrical cost as that would be next to near impossible for me to determine.  I figure those costs are balanced by the energy savings to me of having to carry home heavy bottles of laundry detergent and the time it takes out of my week.  I hope that not only will making my own laundry detergent be good for the pocket book but also good for the environment. My detergent will sit over night to gel and be ready for use on Tuesday.

Would you be willing to  make home made laundry detergent or bar soap? Perhaps you already are. It seems that many bloggers are making a lot of things from scratch and that is, as Martha Stewart says, " a good thing".

In future I also plan to make bar soap and scented soaps. I met a wonderful blogger named Gerry who has a blog devoted to soap making which you can check out here. I'm hoping to try out her recipes and tips myself.

Keeping Busy

Hi friends,

I have been very busy the past few weeks and lately have slowed down with blogging as a result. I see that a number of you have slowed down with your blogging also. I guess this is all part of the lazy, hazy days of summer, lol.

Last weekend I had a great surprise. A cousin of mine whom I haven't seen for years was here to visit me. This was totally unexpected and she came from very far away with other relatives on a long road trip. Her other relatives were visiting close by to where I live so it was very convenient for her and I to get together and I invited her to stay for a few days. Unfortunately her ride left a day earlier than expected so we didn't get to do everything we wanted but we did get to visit a lot. In fact, we were up to the wee hours of the morning both nights and we were both very tired as result but eager to get caught up on years of living.

In one of our outings we spent a good deal of time watching the small birds and pigeons, and of course, feeding them. One thing that fascinated me is watching the little birds take a bird bath in the dust after they had eaten. Here is a little bird in the hole he/she dug to play around in. You can see the two birds better if you click on the photo to enlarge it.

Another thing we did was hang up some of my pictures and souvenirs that I hadn't had a chance to get around to since moving back into my condo. Now holding pride of place in the front room is the Maasai wedding necklace from Narok, Kenya; an African mask from Mombasa, Kenya and Kisii soapstone bowls from Kisii, Kenya.

I am sorry about the lighting and the resolution for the photos but I guess it is really too dark in my front room at this hour of the night to take good photographs. Hopefully you can see them well enough.

I also had a chance to re-hang my Aboriginal art in the front room. The small piece that is hanging under the wooden carving (on the right of the photo below) is a very unique piece created by Woodlands Cree elder (scroll down to the third biography on the page link), Angelique Merasty, who has now passed. It is called a birch bark biting and I have had it framed. It is a very special piece to me because it is an almost extinct art. You can't see the biting design but I will post a close up of it sometime. For now I simply wanted to show the grouping of pictures. Each of these pieces has it's own story which I may tell sometime. (There are actually two Angelique Merasty's and both of them do birch bark biting. I don't know for sure but I think the younger woman is related to the one who has passed on. In any case they have the same name and the younger one is quite prolific in her work towards cultural preservation.)

In addition to having company, I have enrolled in an Osteofit class for those with joint problems. The first class was a real work out but manageable. Yesterday and today however we are having a heat wave so I opted to stay home from exercise class today. I will return on Monday next week. In the meantime, I have my 3rd swimming lesson tomorrow.

In between these activities I have been super busy with the mortgage renewal process. I use a mortgage broker to shop around for the best deal for me. Due to the fact I am now retired, I have to provide numerous documents to confirm my income so gathering and sending them has been rather time consuming. With the global recession and banking problems in several countries, our banks are now more stringent in all forms of lending. So this time around, I need to get a real estate appraisal done as well. The appraisal was done today and the report should be submitted to the broker tomorrow. I expect to hear about my loan options on Tuesday of next week. This process works so nice and fast and that suits me perfectly!

Once I decide on the lender, I want to get all the legal work completed by the end of the third week of July. This is a little challenging given the classes I'm taking, personal appointments and a diabetes group I will attend that same week. But I push on as I want to get everything done before I visit mom again at the end of the month.

In reviewing the documents required by the broker and the potential lenders, I came across some issues and discrepancies in the mortgage statements provided by my current lender. I spent some time on the phone with them today and they are opening an investigation into my queries. It seems that they may have been applying less of my bi-weekly payments to the principal than I had thought. It also seems that my municipality has taken more in real property taxes than they should have as I am entitled to a homeowner grant on a portion of the taxes. I need to follow up with the City Hall in the next day or two and get this straightened out. Normally, this has never been an issue but I'm finding that it very much depends on the lender. The very first mortgage lender I engaged with was simply the best and they were on top of all their paperwork and in turn, their reporting to me and making sure I was completely in the loop.

Now you may wonder why I didn't find out about these issues earlier. In fact I did, but never had time for everything to "gel" and become clear to me, or the time and motivation to really get to the bottom of it all. It seems the time is now. I am confident it will all be sorted out before I travel again. The travel really does cut into my ability to get things done here at home but I am thankful I can still visit  mom and help her with her daily needs also.

I realize my list of summer activities thus far is probably much different than yours. I tend not to lie on the beach or go camping or picnicking unless I go with a larger group,  visit relatives or go on holiday.  What activities are keeping you busy this summer dear reader? I would love to hear from you!

Problems with the Comment Section

Hello my lovely readers,

This is a quick note to let you know I am having issues with the comment feature here at Blogger. In particular the problems I am having are in regards to my last posted entry on learning to swim. The problems have occurred over the past few days. Sometimes I will publish your comment and it won't appear! Other times, I publish my response and it won't appear. Most recently I see all approved comments appear but my own response is not in the proper format. For now I will leave it like that. I simply wanted to let you all know that I am not ignoring you or your comments. I appreciate every one of them.

Are any of you having similar issues?

Learning to Swim

I mentioned before that I was going to start swimming lessons. I have now taken my second lesson. I'm enjoying it and since these are private lessons we will be going very slowly through the training.

It isn't the first time I have tried to learn how to swim. In fact I can swim a little but it is deeper water that frightens me. I need to get over my fear and anxiety of deep water before I can truly learn to swim.

My instructor is a young Chinese man who himself learned to swim as an adult. I'm enjoying his approach very much and it is quite different to any lessons I've previously had so I'm feeling optimistic.

How about you my readers? Are any of you unable to swim, have a fear of water or learned rather late in life? I'd love to hear your story.