Jo’s Cafe

Adding on to my posting here on Child Obesity on June 2nd, WebMD adds in a news article today. They say that obese children need to have their blood glucose tested regularly. This is what Diabetics do everyday. (Mine is up today in the 130s, which is too high for example)

Elevations in blood sugar, a sign of possible diabetes, may surface relatively rapidly, new research indicates. The findings were presented in San Diego at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting.

[...]

The number of obese kids in the U.S. has never been higher. An estimated 16 percent of kids and teens aged 6-19 were overweight in 1999-2002, says the CDC. That’s 45 percent more than in 1988-1994.

**Emphasis is mine

This is all well and good - but are parents getting the word?
Are doctors?
Are insurance companies?

Although a finger stick test is fairly cheap, a full blood panel to determine fasting glucose levels is not.

So what should you do? Next time you take your children, or yourself for that matter, to the doctor, ask the nurse for a stick test, just as a precaution. Never hurts to know, and it’s quick and mostly painless.

Further Reading: Weight Loss: Helping Your Child to Lose Weight