Author Post 3

Diabetes

Diabetes is a serious disease that has affected more than 29 million Americans. There are two different types of diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is when the body does not produce insulin. Insulin is a hormone that is necessary to produce glucose to get energy to the body. Type 1 diabetes is usually diagnosed at a young age within children and young adults. Type 2 diabetes is when the body does not properly use insulin. This causes the blood glucose levels to rise above the normal level. Type 2 diabetes usually develops later in life with older adults and often with obese individuals. Today, type 2 diabetes is the most common type of diabetes in the world.

Some symptoms of both types of diabetes include frequent urination, thirst, and hunger. The body may seem to be extremely fatigue and vision can become blurry and unclear. It will take a long time for cuts and bruises to heel on their own. A person with type 1 diabetes may experience some weight loss even though they are eating. It is common for the hands and feet to experience pain, numbness, and tingling with type 2 diabetes. If the disease is detected early, then treatment can decrease the risk of developing more severe complications. Type 2 diabetes can be prevented with the correct treatment and guidance. Sometimes, early treatment can return high blood glucose levels back to normal.

Treatment for diabetes includes insulin therapy, medications, monitoring glucose levels, healthy diet, and physical activity. The only way for the body to receive insulin is through insulin injections or a pump. It can’t be taken orally because the stomach enzymes will break down the insulin. There are additional medications to help high blood pressure if it is necessary. People with diabetes must monitor their blood glucose levels multiple times a day. This is the only way to make sure that the blood glucose level stays within the acceptable range for the individual. It is important for a diabetic person to get a nutritious diet and exercise often to help maintain blood glucose levels low. They should eat a healthy balanced diet of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and proteins. It is recommended to try and get at least 30 minutes to an hour of physical activity a day. Healthy foods and physical activity will overall improve a person's health and life.

I have a passion for diabetes because a family member of mine was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes about a year ago. I have the ability to see and somewhat experience some of the complications that people with diabetes go through on a daily basis. This was a huge challenge for my entire family and our lifestyles. We all changed our diets to a healthier one to help our family member adjust to their new adjustments and lifestyle. We started to eat healthier meals and tried to take morning or afternoon walks together. This was a difficult thing for everyone to do but it is very important to all of us. We want to have this person in our lives for as long as we can. I wish we would have been more educated about the necessary information ahead of time. We maybe could have prevented the disease from developing or at least eliminate some complications. The world needs to be more aware of these important life changing events so we can decease or prevent the developing of diabetes and other diseases.

Author Post 2

3 Steps to a Healthy Lifestyle

I picked a nutrition education brochure that talks about 3 steps to a healthy lifestyle. The 3 steps include balance, physical activity, and moderation. This gives people an idea of what they need to do to live a healthy lifestyle. This brochure was review by the USDA. The USDA gave the brochure a good and positive review because overall it is well put together and informational. I like how the brochure is very colorful and eye catching to the viewer. Most of the white space is well used up with either words or pictures. There is always something for the viewer to read or a picture to look at. The bright, colorful words attract the viewer’s eyes. This is a good thing because it quickly gets their attention and interest in the brochure. That way they want to read it and find out more about it.

The one thing I found the most interesting is how the brochure is split up and organized. The brochure is categorized into 3 simple steps. The 3 steps make the brochure very organized and well structured. It makes the whole entire thing look simple and easy to navigate and understand. The 3 step process looks and sounds very manageable for anyone and everyone. Compared to something that has a lot of words or a long, lengthy list looks a lot more difficult and time consuming. People tend not to try new things if they think they are going to be bad at it or look stupid. They don’t want someone else to judge them for doing it wrong. Today, people don’t want to have to struggle doing things because then they get discouraged and won’t want to continue to try again. We all want something that is fast, easy, and simple.

A nutrition educator could use this brochure for pretty much anything. They could use it within a class, meetings, schools, health care offices, interventions, and many more things. A nutrition educator could put this brochure out on display at any of these listed locations. That way people could come up whenever they want to and look at the brochure on their own. The nutrition educator could also inform any individuals on more nutritional information and encourage them to take the brochure home with them.

This brochure is very versatile because children, teenagers, and adults could all use this as a helpful resource. The topic of the brochure is something that everyone can use and can relate to in their lives. At some point in everyone’s life we need a motivator or some kind of guide to keep us all on track. I think the reading level of the brochure is pretty simple and basic. All of the words that are used in the brochure are easy to read and understandable to all levels. There are detailed pictures for anyone who is unable to read or understand something. The way the brochure is set up makes it easy for people to follow along. It is as easy as 1, 2, 3 to a healthy life style.

Author Post 1

Alysa Bajenary is the author of Inspired RD blog. She is a dietitian by trade, a freelance-at-home mom, a justice advocate, a photographer, writer, editor, and fitness pro. Alysa has celiac disease and she talks about how she lives her life with this disease. She has a husband who is a professional baseball coach and together they have two kids. They decided to homeschool their kids because they are always moving and traveling.

The way Alysa sets up her blog and the pictures she uses draws me into her blog site. She posts pictures of herself, her family, and events that happen in her life. I really like that because she relates things to her everyday life. It makes her blog very personal, unique, and creative. Alysa talks about a variety of topics including health, fitness, life, recipes, photography, information about herself, and contact information. The design of her blog is very organized and professional. She has tabs at the top of the page so it is easy to access and navigate. Alysa's blog is eye appealing and entertaining because she has a green color scheme background and she uses pictures that add a visual affect for the viewer to engage in. She also includes multiple links that are connected to her social media accounts. That makes it really easy and convenient for people to access and continue to follow her healthy lifestyle.

Alysa addresses her audience informally. She writes her posts like she is actually in person talking to us. She seems very personal and in touch with her followers. I feel like she wants to try and make personal connections with as many of her followers as possible. The information provided is pretty accurate because she is expressing her views and personal experiences about nutrition, fitness, and life. Everything she says is accurate to her, but that doesn't mean it may work the same for others. Everyone is different so what might work for one person may not work for another. Alysa engages readers into her blog by her pictures. She is into photography so a lot of her pictures she actually took herself instead of just getting them online.

Another thing that interested me was that some of her blog posts are about celiac disease. Alysa has celiac disease and she talks about how she lives with it every day. She shares the barriers that she has faced and learned to overcome. She published a variety amount of different gluten free recipes for people to try. I like this about her blog because celiac disease is something that is becoming very common in the world. This blog can help people that are going through the same challenges as her. It can make them feel like they aren’t alone and that there are other people going through the same things. It is also like a support system for people with celiac disease. I would like to try to incorporate more pictures of my own to make my blog more unique and personal. Right now I have been getting all of my pictures online. I would like to try and make my blog similar to Alysa's.