A recent Harvard Medical School study found that mothers with diabetes are more than 50% more likely to experience postpartum depression than mothers who do not have the disease. The study, which examined more than 11,000 low-income mothers in New Jersey, revealed that one in ten mothers with diabetes experienced postpartum depression within one year of childbirth. Less than 6% of the women without diabetes experienced the same symptoms.

The women who developed postpartum depression following birth had no previous indication of depression during pregnancy. They were identified as having postpartum depression if their medical records indicated a diagnosis of depression or if they filled prescriptions for antidepressant medications. The study found that women with diabetes were about as likely to develop postpartum depression after their pregnancies as women who had experienced postpartum depression following a previous birth.

Postpartum depression is characterized by a long-lasting, extreme emotional downshift following birth. Symptoms include appetite loss, insomnia, tearfulness, and lack of connection with the newborn. Some women may fear they will harm themselves or the child. These symptoms should not be confused with the “baby blues” that many women feel after giving birth and last days or a few weeks.  

The researchers that conducted this study caution that there is no proof that diabetes causes postpartum depression, but only that the two are somehow linked.

If you think you have postpartum depression, seek medical attention.

Share your experiences with pregnancy or postpartum depression on the Healia Pregnancy Online Health Community and Support Group. To learn more about pregnancy, visit the Healia Pregnancy Health Guide. Test your pregnancy knowledge on the Healia Pregnancy Quiz.


_{Photo: KellyWoolen, Flickr, Creative Commons}

Though Sonia Sotomayor is well known for being the Supreme Court’s first Hispanic nominee, the judge will also be the first Supreme Court justice with type 1 diabetes if she is confirmed to the position. According to the American Diabetes Association, nearly 24 million Americans have diabetes, but only 5 -10% of people with diabetes have type 1.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that attacks the pancreas, destroying the body’s only insulin-producing cells. Insulin is the hormone that regulates blood glucose, also known as blood sugar. In order to regulate blood sugar and in turn survive, Sotomayor (and all people with type 1 diabetes) must have insulin delivered to their bodies through an injection or an insulin pump.

Most people with type 1 diabetes are diagnosed as children, and some people still refer to type 1 diabetes as “childhood-onset diabetes.” Sotomayor was diagnosed when she was just eight years old in the early 1960s, a time when diabetes was seen as a lifelong burden and debilitating disease. President Obama addressed this issue when introducing Sotomayor as his nominee for Supreme Court last week.

“When she was diagnosed… she was informed that people with diabetes can’t grow up to be police officers or private investigators like Nancy Drew. In essence, she was told she’d have to scale back her dreams,” the president said.

There is no prevention method or cure for type 1 diabetes, but people with diabetes can lead fulfilling, successful lives as long as they take insulin and manage their blood glucose levels. And though plenty of controversy surrounds Sotomayor’s court decisions and personal politics, there’s no question about her diabetes: it will not affect her ability to serve as a Supreme Court justice.

Want to voice your opinions about Sotomayor or type 1 diabetes? Visit the Healia Diabetes Type 1 Online Health Community and Support Group. Think you know everything about the disease? Test your knowledge on the Healia Diabetes Quiz.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a warning not to share insulin pens due to the risk of blood borne infections. Insulin pens are pen-shaped injector devices that contain a disposable needle and a source of insulin that are approved only for single-patient use.

FDA officials want to remind both doctors and patients that insulin pens and the cartridges they contain should not be used to administer medication to more than one patient. While the devices typically contain enough insulin for a patient to self-administer several doses before the reservoir or cartridge is empty, the pens should only be reused by the same patient. Sharing the pens raises the risk of transmitting blood borne diseases such as HIV and hepatitis.

The FDA said they had received reports of two unnamed hospitals using the same insulin pen to administer medication to more than 2,000 patients. While the hospitals reportedly replaced the needles, they continued to reuse the same insulin cartridge. The FDA wants to stress that this is an unsafe practice, the pens are designed for safe use by only one patient. Even if the needles are changed between each patient the risk of disease transmission may still exists.

Want to learn more about insulin administration for diabetes? Join the Healia Support Community for Diabetes Type I or the Healia Support Community for Diabetes Type 2.

_{Photo: RogueSun Media, Flickr, Creative Commons}

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) recently launched a new online nutrition tool called MyFoodAdvisor. This online tool helps people better understand food choices by suggesting healthy alternatives and analyzing the foods a person eats. MyFoodAdvisor was created to provide food information to people with diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease, as well as those trying to lose weight. 

When health care providers tell patients to watch their carbs, eat more fiber or to avoid saturated fats, most people don’t know where to start. MyFoodAdvisor takes the guesswork out of that. This tool appeals to so many looking for nutrition information: people with diabetes because of the consistent portions of carbohydrates and proteins; people with or at risk for heart disease because of the option to search by fiber, sodium and saturated fats; and people with kidney disease because potassium and phosphorous information is included, which is not listed on standard nutrition labels (Ann Albright, PhD, RD, President, Health Care&Education, American Diabetes Association). 

The ADA and Healia are working together through Healia’s online diabetes communities. Two prominent diabetes experts from the ADA, Dr. Sue Kirkman and Stephanie Dunbar, are now available to answer your questions about diabetes free of charge.

diabetes MyFoodAdvisor American Diabetes Association

We are delighted to announce that the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and Healia are working together to improve access to high quality and personalized diabetes information through our online health community Healia Communities. The ADA is the nation’s premier voluntary health organization supporting diabetes research, information, and advocacy.

Through this new collaboration, members of Healia Communities will now be able to ask questions of two prominent diabetes experts from the ADA, Dr. Sue Kirkman and Stephanie Dunbar. The ADA will also have a presence on Healia’s diabetes-related communities and have opportunities to communicate directly with Healia Communities members.

Through this exciting relationship with the ADA, we hope that Healia Communities will become an essential resource for information and support for people with diabetes or those taking care of someone with diabetes.

Healia Communities is a free online health community that enables people to get personal support for their health decisions from peers and experienced health professionals. Healia Communities helps you make better health decisions by allowing you to:

• Share your health knowledge, experiences, and favorite resources.
• Connect with people like yourself who’ve experienced your situation.
• Ask questions of the community, your peers, and health professionals

About the New Diabetes Experts on Healia Communities, Dr. Kirkman and Ms. Dunbar:

Sue Kirkman, MD is the Vice President of Clinical Affairs for the American Diabetes Association. Dr. Kirkman has primary responsibility for the work of ADA’s Clinical Affairs area, including oversight of the Professional Practice Committee and its clinical practice recommendations and consensus statements, which provide guidance and direction to health care professionals around the world.

Stephanie Dunbar, MPH, RD is the Director of Nutrition and Clinical Affairs at the American Diabetes Association. Stephanie has been with the ADA since August of 2001 and is currently responsible for managing nutrition-related activities and projects for the Association as well as assisting with development of ADA Clinical Practice Recommendations.

Join the Healia / American Diabetes Association Diabetes Community.

View the press release about the Healia / American Diabetes Association collaboration.

American Diabetes Association diabetes online health community

Jay Cutler, a quarterback for the Denver Broncos football team, has been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes, also called insulin-dependent diabetes, is a chronic disease where the pancreas does not produce enough insulin to regulate blood sugar levels. Patients with Type 1 diabetes require regular insulin injections.

Diabetes Type 2, also called adult-onset diabetes, is a chronic disease where the body does not produce enough insulin or the cells do not react normally to insulin, affecting the way the body metabolizes sugar (glucose). It is much more common than Type 1 diabetes. About 21 million Americans have some form of diabetes.

Other professional athletes who have competed with diabetes include Hockey Hall of Famer Bobby Clarke, Charlotte Bobcats forward Adam Morrison, golfers Scott Verplank, Michelle McGann and Kelli Kuehne, and Olympic swimmer Gary Hall Jr.

Do you have a question about Diabetes? Visit Healia Communities and Ask an Expert your question. For online support, you can also join the Type 1 Diabetes Community.  

Type 1 Diabetes Jay Cutler Denver Broncos

Since 1987 the death rate due to diabetes has increased by 45 percent, while the death rate for heart disease, stroke, and cancer have all declined. As more and more Americans are diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, education and prevention, healthy eating, and physical activity should to be at the top of America’s priority list. Here are a few statistics from the American Diabetes Association: 

• Approximately 4,110 people are diagnosed with diabetes each day in the United States.
• An estimated 20.8 million children and adults in the United States, or 7% of the population, have diabetes.
• Of the 20.8 million people with diabetes, an estimated 14.6 million have been diagnosed, but 6.2 million people are not aware that they have the disease.
• In 2005, 1.5 million new cases of diabetes were diagnosed in people age 20 years or older.
• Diabetes is the fifth-deadliest disease in the United States.

Type 2 diabetes is a life-long disease and the most common form of diabetes. Type 2 diabetes occurs when the body does not respond correctly to insulin (a hormone that is needed to convert sugar, starches, and other food into energy needed for daily life).

For information about diabetes, please see the Healia Health Guide: Diabetes. This resource features extensive information on the prevention and treatment of diabetes. Or visit Healia's new health social networking site and talk to members of the Diabetes Community. Still need more information? You can also Ask an Expert a question about diabetes at Healia Communities.

diabetes Type 2 diabetes diabetes prevention