|
      |
||
 |
|
  |
|
Rewarding for you and us Defeat Diabetes Foundation Defeat Diabetes
Foundation 150 153rd Ave, Suite 300 Madeira Beach, FL 33708 |
Defeat Diabetes® MonthDefeat Diabetes Foundation (DDF) is dedicated to continuing what seems to be our never ending work to Defeat Diabetes®. We know that Defeating Diabetes poses many challenges. The first step is awareness of the risk factors, warning signs, its high financial costs and complications. The second step is arming individuals with information to make the right lifestyle choices to insure their health and well being each and every day for themselves, their family and their community. The final step is acting on that knowledge and taking a personal pledge to prevent diabetes in your own family. That can be tough because some of it is about having the knowledge you need. Fortunately, DDF is there to provide over 4600 pages of information about diabetes, including information on self management, some of it is having the resources in your community and the final piece is about personal responsibility. A major part of our effort to Defeat Diabetes® is in the area of prevention � this is one area where DDF believes there is some hope. Doing the following 4 things can, actually, reduce your risk of developing the disease by as much as 55%!
Likewise, many of the things you need to do to prevent diabetes are also effective for the management of the disease and its various conditions. Below is a calendar of events to take you through the month. The links take you to articles, downloads, tools, puzzles and games, flashcards at the DDF site, as well as some links to other sites with interesting information. Each day review the activities for the day and click the links to get more information or to complete the activity. We're also providing you with a calendar you can print out and put on your refrigerator as a daily reminder to visit the website for more information. April 1 - No Fool's Day � Commit to taking Defeat Diabetes� Challenges by participating in the full month of activities. Take the pledge and post it on your refrigerator as a reminder. Be sure to invite family and friends. Take the Screening Test to determine your risk for developing diabetes. REMINDER: Now is the perfect time to have your family start logging their daily physical activity. This will give you a better idea of their general health and areas where you can make improvements. Islets of Humor� Cartoon � Pre-Diabetes April 2 - Try a New Veggie Friday - Asparagus - Asparagus flashcard April 3 - Plan/Plant Your Garden - Not only does a vegetable garden provide an amazing cost saving for food, it is a much better use of available land than grass or ornamental plantings. Gardening also provides healthy physical activity that every member of the family can participate in, regardless of age. national gardening association, kids gardening, Shirley�s garden April 4 - Take a Walk - Walking is one of the easiest forms of exercise. All you need is a good pair of shoes, comfortable clothing, and the ability to open the front door! Looking for a special place to walk? Here's a few links: Traildino ® largest database of trails in the world by continent, country and region. Trailink ® has information on more than 30,000 miles of bike trails, walking trails, equestrian trails, and hiking and running trails, including interactive trail maps, trail descriptions, pictures and more. Looking for more of a challenge? How about power walking? After completing his 10,030.3 mile walk of the U.S. perimeter, DDF Executive Director Andrew P. Mandell - Mr. Diabetes®, was looking for a challenge. He found it -- read more from his walking guru Bonnie Stein. Islets of Humor™ Cartoon - A Walk a Day Keeps the Diabetes Away April 5 - Try a New Fruit Monday - Tangerine flashcard � Recipe - Pineapple Tangerine Refresher Destressing - Recent studies conducted by Carnegie Mellon University have concluded that stress can cause ill health when it is chronic. The signs of stress will not only show up in your body as physical symptomssuch asmore frequent colds, injuries, relationship problems, depression, insomnia and more. Earlier studies from other sources indicated that as much as 75% of doctors visitsare related tostress. Good for you and your Diabetes -- read more from Khadi Madama, Yoga Diva April 6 - Take the Stairs Tuesday - Walking up (and down) stairs is a good cardiovascular exercise, that�s why so many gyms have Stairmaster machines. So, on Tuesday, bypass the elevator and expensive gym fees and take the stairs in as many places as you can. Be sure to add a few extra minutes in case you have to take it slow. Islets of Humor� - Exercise Equipment April 7 - What's Your A1c Day? Since 2002, Defeat Diabetes Foundation has been recommending that individuals with diabetes, and those at risk for developing Type 2 diabetes, have a regular HbA1c test performed by their doctor.
Try a New Whole Grain Wednesday - (Barley) - The recently released USDA Dietary Guidelines for Americans encourage Americans to increase their intake of whole grain foods to at least three servings per day. Whole grains are essentially living seeds with the potential to sprout and grow. Mushroom Barley Pilaf
April 8 � Walk From the Back of the Parking Lot Thursday � Did you know that most of our errands are less than a mile from home, yet we drive? If you must drive to conduct your errands, at least park in the back of the lot � even 5 and 10 minute bursts of activity help! Get the history of diabetes in a nutshell with a diabetes timeline.
Islets of Humor� Cartoon � Carb Exchange
April 9 - Try a New Veggie Friday � Spinach -- Spinach flashcard Eat Healthy by Adding Color to Your Diet Islets of Humor� Cartoon � New Food Pyramid April 10 � Try a New Physical Activity � There are literally hundreds of physical activities and sports that individuals can participate in � no matter how large or small the community. This Saturday try something you haven�t done before or revisit something that you�ve tried in the past. Possibilities include bowling, going to the batting cage, disc golf or Frisbee, kayaking � for more ideas. April 11 � Go Fly a Kite � The perfect way to welcome in spring, grab some fresh air, a little dashing about and participating in an ancient human activity. There are lots of kiting events scheduled nationwide between March 27th and May 2nd � look for one near you or just find a nice flat field or beach and have fun. April 12 - Try a New Fruit Monday � Pineapple - Pineapple flashcard How to Add Fruits and Veggies to Your Diet April 13 � Take the Stairs Tuesday Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans Islets of Humor� Cartoon � Good Fat Avocado April 14 � Try a New Whole Grain Day Bulgur � Recipe Western Wheat Pilaf How to add more whole grains to your diet April 15 � Walk from the back of the parking lot Thursday Diabetes Puzzles - Crossword, Word Search and Word Jumble
Islets of Humor� Cartoon � Dog Walks Man
April 16 - Try a New Veggie Friday � Peas - Peas flashcard Fresh vs. Frozen vs. Canned � What�s Best? April 17 � Visit a Farmer�s Market - Fresh fruits and vegetables are an important part of a healthy diet. Although many large grocery store chains have excellent produce departments, many of the fruits and vegetables are from foreign countries, are grown with pesticides or irradiated so that they can survive the trip from the farm to the grocery store. A local farmer�s market provides an important link between your community and fresh food sources. Citizens have an opportunity to interact with the farmers whose food they eat. Small farmers, generally, also utilize more eco-friendly farming techniques. Children get in touch with seeing food that isn�t canned, frozen or processed. Find a Farmer�s market near you. April 18 � Take a Trip to the Zoo Animal Park or Aquarium. Today�s zoos and aquariums play a vital role in the conservation of endangered species. Not only will you get some great exercise walking around looking at the exhibits, but spring is also the perfect time to check out all the cute baby animals! April 19 - Try a New Fruit Monday � Kiwi Fruit - Kiwi Flashcard April 20 � Take the Stairs Tuesday Diabetes Jeopardy Game � Link to downloadable program (zip file) Islets of Humor� Cartoon � Blood Pressure April 21 � Try a New Whole Grain Day -- Buckwheat � Recipe -- Blueberry Buckwheat Bread Islets of Humor� Cartoon � Lucky Day April 22 � Walk from the back of the parking lot Thursday. Don�t forget today is Earth Day so, while you are walking, pick up a bit of trash along the way. Mother Earth will thank you. April 23 - Try a new Veggie Friday Lettuce - Lettuce flashcard Are you interested in trying out other Seasonal Fruits and Vegetables? Visit our What�s in Season page for other ideas. April 24 � An Outdoor Scavenger Hunt is a great way to explore the great outdoors, spend some time with family and friends, and get some exercise and sunshine. Whether it�s a city, county, state or national park; the beach; a local river or even the local playground - it�s an opportunity to get more in touch with the world around you. Here is a list of items to scavenge. Islets of Humor� Cartoon � Goodbye Pre-Diabetes April 25 Unplug from Video This Week. Between television, computer use, video game playing and hundreds of mobile applications we spend way too much time staring at a video screen. So, this week cut out television viewing and video game playing, keep computer use to what is necessary for business or school and get outside! Don�t think too much video is a problem? Then, use this log for your family for a week to determine how much time they are spending in front of a video screen. Tips on how to reduce screen time April 26 - Try a New Fruit Monday - Apricot - Apricot flashcard Want to learn more about other Fruits and Vegetables? Visit Know Your Fruits and Veggies� for additional columns. April 27 � Take the Stairs Tuesday Journey to Shangri La with Khadi Madama, our resident yogi. Khadi has been kind enough to share her audio recording of The Journey to Shangri La, which includes breathing techniques, yoga poses and a guided deep relaxation journey. Click here to stream or download now (MP3 format, 60 MB) Islets of Humor� Cartoon � Spring Fever April 28 � Try a New Whole Grain Day Oatmeal � Recipe - Apple Banana Oatmeal) Portion Control � Portion size is one area where we go wrong when making eating choices. Part of the reason for that is we eat nearly 75% of our meals outside the home. When it comes to restaurants, food is, actually, the item with the lowest overhead. So, restaurants have got us used to overly generous portions to keep us coming back.
April 29 � Walk from the back of the parking lot Thursday
Defeat Diabetes Foundation is a non-profit 501(C)(3) charity dedicated to creating awareness about and preventing diabetes. If you have found any of the information we�ve provided to you this month valuable please take the time to make a small donation so that we can continue our work to Defeat Diabetes�. Islets of Humor� Cartoon � Diabetes Donations April 30 - Try a new Fruit Friday � Strawberry -- Strawberry flashcard Plant a Tree Day- Arbor Day � Trees are wonderful for our environment � they create green and shady spaces, help clean our atmosphere and, if properly selected, can also provide us with blossoms in the spring and fruit in the summer or fall. If planting for Arbor Day or any other time please consider planting a fruit tree. This concludes the activities for Defeat Diabetes� Month. Hopefully, you�ve learned a few new things about fruits, vegetables and whole grains, and started incorporating more of them in your diet. Maybe you�ve even started walking a bit more, taking the stairs more often and, generally, being more physically active. Don�t stop now! Sign up for the President�s Challenge � a fun way to keep being active and get rewards for your efforts. Updated 2010 |
  Join us on Facebook
 Costa Rica Travel Corp. will donate a portion of the proceeds to and is a sponsor of Defeat Diabetes Foundation.
 Send your unopened, unexpired test strips to:
|
 |