Real Talk

Families and Diabetes: Why We Need To Be Careful

by Kevyn Gohu
November 29, 2021

Diabetes has affected families for years. Here’s what we’ve learned from the talk Heart of the Matter: Minimizing Heart Disease Risk to Optimize Care.

Diabetes is usually a lifetime disease for many. Especially during the holidays and family gatherings, we ditch our diets and cheat—which leads to many of us developing diabetes. It’s not just a sugar processing problem but also a heart problem. It hits us due to a lot of reasons. We end up getting diabetes due to stress and being burned out and even more so if it’s in our family history.

How does diabetes work in families?

There are two kinds of diabetes: Type 1 and Type 2. But for pregnant moms, there’s also Gestational Diabetes that sometimes fades away. Most of our families usually suffer from Type 2, which means our bodies just can’t handle the sugar anymore. Our friend that breaks down sugar, insulin, no longer has an effect on our system. We usually call that Insulin Resistance which leads to Diabetes Type 2. Type 1 is when our livers never opened shop to begin with. That usually means daily insulin shots or worse, dialysis.

However, some people are more prone to getting it because it’s in their genetics. If the family has had at least three generations’ worth, it’s possible that the family has the genetic mutation for being diabetes-prone.

“It’s a cause for concern,” says Zuellig-Pharma

Zuellig-Pharma revealed during the Heart of the Matter talk that many Filipino families are often susceptible to diabetes especially because of the pandemic. Since it’s hard to move around and burn the sugar, it ends up being stored in the body. Some working parents have a tendency to stress eat to cope with the pressure, which leads to a foundation of Diabetes Type 2. Since the study shows it usually appears in adults more than kids, we’re the ones who need to watch out this year.

Staying healthy and happy during the holidays

It’s hard to avoid that glistening Canonigo or wanting to inhale that plate of Bibingka sitting on the table with our names on it. But, in the name of our health and our kids, we have to control how much we take. Getting sick with diabetes can mean extra pressure on family expenses for medication. It’ll also affect our mood and how we parent our kids because our energy’s not managed properly. Besides, prevention is always the best cure than the meds themselves.

Looking to prevent diabetes in your family? Here’s how!

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