Dana Palmer Physical Therapy

November 14 is World Diabetes Day  and November is Diabetes Month in both the United States and Canada .  Diabetes is a condition that affects approximately  1 out of every 11 people  worldwide and  up to 50% of those living with diabetes don’t know that they have it .  Diabetes  reduces immune response and increases risk of  heart attack  and  stroke . It can result in  eye damage ,  kidney failure ,  nerve and blood vessel damage ,  gum disease ,  wounds , and  amputations . BUT, these complications can be PREVENTED with appropriate management. This month I will be doing a series of posts that will cover: - What diabetes is - Risk factors - How diabetes affects women specifically - Key factors in management - Diabetic foot and wound care to prevent amputation ____________________ WHAT IS DIABETES? When we eat food, our body breaks down the carbohydrates ("carbs") into a sugar called GLUCOSE. Ca...

“Human beings are the only species that will deliberately deprive themselves of sleep without legitimate gain.”  - Matthew Walker, PhD (Author of " Why We Sleep ")                                               Sleep is a big issue for many people. Some have difficulty sleeping because they are in pain. Others have difficulty quieting their mind at night. Regardless of the cause, a lack of sleep can have some pretty damaging effects. I think we all sort of have a sense that sleep matters , but perhaps not how much or why, so let's go over what some of the research says about sleep. First of all, the average adult human needs 7-9 hours of sleep each night . This does not mean you should go for 5 days with only 5 hours of sleep and then try to "catch up" on the weekend by sleeping half the day so that your average sleep is 49 hours for the week. While this may work...