Following Doctor's Orders Key to Beating Diabetes

To overcome diabetes, it’s important to follow your doctor’s orders. Yet, startling statistics show many people don’t.

• More than half of all Americans with chronic diseases - such as diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart disease - don’t follow their physician’s medication and lifestyle guidance.
• Two-thirds of all Americans don’t take some or all of their prescription medications.
• Only 50 percent of men and 68 percent of women recognize regular medical checkups are important to staying well.

“Studies have shown that complications from diabetes develop over time, but patients often are unaware of the disease’s progression,” said Jorge Plutzky, M.D., cardiologist and director of the Vascular Disease Prevention Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School.

“As a result, chronic diseases like diabetes present a real challenge to maintaining an adequate long-term treatment regimen. Patients don’t really notice an immediate difference if they miss taking their medication one day or fail to exercise one week. But the damage adds up over time.”

Following a regular physical activity, healthy diet, and medication plan “to the letter” is what medical professionals call “compliance.” Compliance is the key to keeping diabetes under control and avoiding serious complications like heart disease.

Make tasks such as taking your medication, following a healthy diet, and getting physical activity part of your daily routine. Here are some suggestions on how to improve your compliance:

• Visit your doctor regularly. Diabetes is a progressive disease, which means it changes over time. Make a chart to record important information, like weight, blood glucose levels, etc., and share your results with you doctor.
• Set priorities. If you need to make several major lifestyle changes - such as eating differently to lose weight, giving up smoking, and starting an exercise program - do it gradually. Ask your doctor to help you develop a plan that will allow you to prioritize, decide how to begin, and find resources available in your community to help you achieve your goals.
• Stay on track. If your doctor prescribes a medication, ask questions. To establish a routine, it’s important to understand the drug’s benefits and how and when to take it.
• Don’t give up. If a medical treatment or lifestyle change isn’t working for you, don’t quit. Talk to your doctor about other options that may work better.

Skillful Juggling

Compliance can sometimes become a juggling act, Patients with Type 2 diabetes often experience complications that necessitate several medications. These tips can help you manage your prescriptions and improve your quality of life:

• Place medicine bottles near your toothbrush, so taking medicine becomes part of your daily or nightly routine.
• Keep track of your daily medications on a calendar and check them off as you take them each day.
• Bring a record of all medications you’re taking to all doctor’s visits. (This includes over-the-counter meds, vitamins and supplements.) Have your physician review it to ensure that it’s accurate and current.
• Buy an inexpensive plastic pillbox marked with the days of the week to help you remember when to take medications.
• Take your medicine only as directed. Taking too much or too little of a medicine, taking it the wrong way, or mixing it with something you shouldn’t (other medicines, alcohol, or foods) can make you feel worse instead of better. It can lead to a trip to the emergency room.
• Refill your prescriptions in a timely manner, so you don’t run out and miss a dose.
• If you experience any problems with your medicine, call your doctor or pharmacist right away - but don’t stop taking it! Some medicines only cause side effects when they’re taken improperly.
• Don’t stop taking a prescription medicine just because your symptoms go away.

Once your health plan becomes a routine, you’ll feel better and improve your health - and you may even live longer.

This article was provided to Diabetes Positive! by the American Heart Association.

This article from Diabetes Positive! magazine is provided as a service by LifeScan, Inc. All materials are produced independently by Diabetes Positive!, which is solely responsible for its content. Remember that the information provided by this site is for general background purposes and is not intended as a substitute for medical diagnosis or treatment by a trained professional. You should always consult your own physician about any healthcare questions you may have, especially before trying a new medication, diet, fitness program, or approach to health care issues.

Article reprinted with permission from: Diabetes Positive! © Copyright October 2004