We’re Fighting Diabetes in November – and Every Other Month
As we find ourselves firmly in American Diabetes Month® and approach World Diabetes Day on November 14, we’re excited that the world’s attention is once again focused on fighting this disruptive disease.
Diabetes impacts about 10 percent of the entire U.S. population – or about one-third of the country if you count prediabetes. This nationwide epidemic afflicts more than 4,000 new people each and every day, and accounts for almost 15 percent of the country’s total healthcare costs.
As the American Diabetes Association (ADA) – an organization we proudly sponsor – so eloquently puts it, “making healthy choices and taking steps to manage your diabetes can ensure you don’t just live but thrive with diabetes.” We couldn’t agree more.
Helping people thrive has been our goal at DarioHealth since we opened our doors in 2011. We know how hard it is for people with diabetes to manage their condition along with everyday life – it’s a definite balancing act! Depending on what’s going on in a patient’s life, it’s not always easy to make healthy choices, comply with doctors’ orders, track personal health data, and manage stress.
An article in The Journal of Medical Internet Research (JMIR) – “You Get Reminded You’re a Sick Person” – explains the problem:
- Tracking data feels like work for many patients
- Personal medical data is emotionally charged
- Comorbidities, common in people with chronic conditions, negatively impact compliance
- Patients think physicians put less stock in self-tracked data than technologically obtained data, such as lab reports
- Novel technologies need to be intuitive, easy, and reduce the burden of patient work
- Uploadable device data will be perceived as more credible
- Solutions must motivate progress and provide support when patients have negative feelings, through techniques that help patients establish relevant goals and action plans