Fit2BTide S12.E08: National Diabetes Awareness Month

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Wvuafm tuscaloosa. [00:00:08] Speaker B: Happy Sunday y'. All. You are listening to Fit to be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7 the capstone. And it is November, my friend. [00:00:16] Speaker C: Happy November 1st. [00:00:17] Speaker B: I know. I mean we acknowledge this all the time that we pre record this show. So technically we are still in the throes of October, but by the time you, you listen to this, we will officially be in November. [00:00:30] Speaker C: We will have time traveled. We will have. Yes. [00:00:33] Speaker B: And you know, I know that we tend to go kind of all over the place in this first five minutes, but I thought I would switch things up a bit. Now we are still going to have random conversation, but I want to ask you real quick, Nika, what is the longest plank you have ever done? What is the longest length of time you have done? A low plank. Just out of curiosity. [00:00:56] Speaker C: It was when I was doing body blast boot camp back in the day with Whitney who used to be your co host. [00:01:05] Speaker B: Yes. [00:01:06] Speaker C: And I remember getting up to around 45 seconds. 45 to 50 seconds. I never hit the minute mark. Don't know why, I just, I never hit the minute mark. But how about you? [00:01:22] Speaker B: I. Let's see. So our wonderful team with wellness and work life earlier this summer they did the are you fitter than a fifth grader challenge. [00:01:33] Speaker C: I [00:01:34] Speaker B: don't know if you remember seeing that in any of your, well bama emails, but they, they did this. And, and so they did all of the things from the fitness test that you would do as a fifth grader. The [00:01:47] Speaker C: governor of physical fitness or the presidential fitness [00:01:49] Speaker B: test. [00:01:50] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:01:50] Speaker B: So it was like V sit and reach, shuttle run. And then there was, there was a planking component. I don't remember planking. I don't care. [00:01:58] Speaker C: But you [00:01:59] Speaker B: know they added sit [00:02:00] Speaker C: ups. We did sit ups. I think they changed it [00:02:02] Speaker B: now. Yes. So you could choose between sit ups and planking. And I was like, oh well, plank whatever. I got to three minutes. I was. Girl, I was shocked. [00:02:12] Speaker C: I'm so proud of you. [00:02:13] Speaker B: Now the reason I ask all of this is because I don't. Excuse me, I don't know if you saw the article at the beginning of October about this 61 year old grandma who broke her own world record with a five hour plank. [00:02:28] Speaker C: Okay, so I can't even get to a minute in my heyday. And, but now listen, I could jump rope for six minutes straight without ever taking a break. You remember that [00:02:38] Speaker B: now? Yes, I do remember that. [00:02:39] Speaker C: I just couldn't plank. I just, I don't know. My forearms Start hurting [00:02:44] Speaker B: and [00:02:45] Speaker C: I start, like, getting bored. But five hours. [00:02:49] Speaker B: I know. I'm like, you could watch a couple of movies. You could binge watch the Saban documentary, you know. Does [00:02:56] Speaker C: her elbows not hurt? [00:02:59] Speaker B: I'm not really sure. I just was like, wow. But apparently it's. I don't know. Apparently she's just been breaking her own record for the past few years and she gets her grandkids to plank with her. [00:03:15] Speaker C: I mean, that is amazing. I could not imagine. [00:03:18] Speaker B: I know. And I'm like, okay, with this Guinness Book of World Record stuff. Do they get any cash or is it just the right. You know, is it just bragging rights? [00:03:27] Speaker C: That's a good question. [00:03:29] Speaker B: Because I mean, like, I've got. There's a price for everything. I mean, you know, but if I'm just doing it for funsies, I don't know. [00:03:36] Speaker C: Yeah, no, no. I think I could find something better to do in five hours time. [00:03:42] Speaker B: Yes. [00:03:42] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:03:43] Speaker B: Now, is there anything. Speaking of the Guinness Book of World Records, is there anything that you would want to break a world record for if you're like, okay, if I could combine some of my natural talents, like, what would be a category you would want to do something in? [00:04:02] Speaker C: You know, I can sleep a lot. [00:04:05] Speaker B: Yes. [00:04:05] Speaker C: My record's 26 hours straight without waking up or getting out of the bed. [00:04:10] Speaker B: Yep. [00:04:11] Speaker C: And I wasn't sick, [00:04:12] Speaker B: dude. [00:04:13] Speaker C: So I completely lost a whole day of my life. I don't even. I didn't live it. I wish I could get paid for that. [00:04:20] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:04:21] Speaker C: You know, but other than that. No. What about you? [00:04:23] Speaker B: You know, I don't know. Other than just thinking. Okay, how many random things from my to do list can I think of within a 10 second period of just the like, bing, bing, bing, B, ping, ping, ping, ping. [00:04:38] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:04:38] Speaker B: People just. I. I don't know. It just. I mean, I want to say people can't imagine, but they can because. [00:04:45] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:04:45] Speaker B: You know, I will just rightfully say that, you know, us working mamas, man. [00:04:50] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:04:51] Speaker B: We're constantly thinking of all the things. I [00:04:52] Speaker C: can tell you, a lot of things in the Guinness Book of World Records that I would not want to attempt. But I know I would never make it in the hot dog eating contest. [00:05:04] Speaker B: Lord, no. Or [00:05:05] Speaker C: any. Any eating contest. I mean, I like to eat, but I don't. I can't. That is a art. [00:05:11] Speaker B: Yeah. And if I'm having to soak it down with some water to get it down my gullet a little easier. No, thank you. [00:05:18] Speaker C: No, thank you. And if I have to put My face down in a pie without my hands and eat. Nah, I want my utensils. [00:05:25] Speaker B: I know. I'm like, I wanna. I wanna savor my pie. I want to intuitively eat it. Right. [00:05:30] Speaker C: I want to take my time to allow my le to, you know, is it my. Is it my leptin that tells me you're satisfied? [00:05:39] Speaker B: Yep. [00:05:40] Speaker C: You know, give it some time, [00:05:41] Speaker B: dude. [00:05:42] Speaker C: Let. Let. Let, you know, 20 minutes. I don't need to [00:05:44] Speaker B: let that gut brain access. 75 [00:05:47] Speaker C: hot dogs and a minute. [00:05:49] Speaker B: No, [00:05:50] Speaker C: no, [00:05:50] Speaker B: no. Well, hard pass, but, y', all, thankfully, that is not our topic of conversation for the rest of the the show. We once again have a fabulous guest with us, and it pertains to a topic that is very specific to November. You guys, we need you to run to the restroom, grab a snack, do what you gotta do. You are listening to Fit to Be Tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7, the capstone, [00:06:21] Speaker A: Wvuafm tuscaloosa. [00:06:31] Speaker C: Welcome back, listeners. You are listening to Fit to Be Tied with Sheena and Neeka on 90.7, the capstone. [00:06:37] Speaker B: That's right. And just before the break, we were acknowledging the fact that it's November, or at least by the time you listen to this episode, it will be November. And November is Diabetes awareness month. Nika. [00:06:50] Speaker C: So our listeners will listen to us. In October, it was breast cancer awareness, and November is diabetes awareness month. [00:06:57] Speaker B: Exactly. And so, you know, just like breast cancer awareness month, we gotta bring in the experts. Yeah. You know, we gotta. We gotta talk shop with our friends, our allied health professionals, all of our great folks. And so I am so excited today to have Ms. Cindy Huggins, who is the program manager, registered dietitian at DCH Diabetes and Nutrition Education Center. Cindy, thanks for being on the show. [00:07:23] Speaker C: Well, I'm just grateful for the invitation, Gina. [00:07:26] Speaker B: Of course, my friend. And now Cindy and I, we go way back, you know, which off air, I was telling Cindy earlier how long Nica and I have known each other. But then when you just. When you mention the years, it just. It kind of puts an out to how old we all are. So we're just. We're not gonna. We're just not gonna do that right now. But we've known each other for a good long while. You know, we. We like to travel to conferences together when they line up with our schedules. But, Cindy, for our listeners, we want you to tell us a little bit about yourself, including your academic and professional background and your current role at dch. [00:08:01] Speaker C: Okay, well, without lingering into the how Old. I am. Let's just start from square one. No, no. Yeah. I was actually [00:08:09] Speaker D: went to here at the University of Alabama. I actually started in performing arts. Got up to about my junior year and decided, well, maybe I don't want to do this for forever or I want to get paid. And I took a filler class in nutrition, literally. And I was actually at Shelton State Community College because I just needed that extra class. You know, how you do nutrition Sounded fun. It was very difficult, very difficult. But I was good at it. And my instructor at the time, Dr. Susan Sayer, was just wonderful. And she really poured into to me and was like, hey, do you want to do this? And I'm like, what? Be a dietitian? And I'm like, what's that? I never really heard of such a thing. Yes, I've heard of that, nutritionist, but I didn't fully understand the profession. So my junior year, I restarted really, with all the sciences, and the next two years of my life was really 24 hours, seven days a week of academics and put me into the career track to become a dietitian. And once that settled, I took a few years to get some experience in oncology nutrition, where I focused on, you know, seeing cancer patients practicing, you know, best practices with nutrition in that environment. Then I moved on to bariatric nutrition, which was for weight management and weight loss surgery. And I bounced around a little bit in between through media and landed back in food service management, of all things. That brought me back to Tuscaloosa after I moved away for just a minute. And then, lo and behold, what I truthfully believe, the Lord put me in the diabetes pathway. I never thought in all my career that I would end up in food service, but also in diabetes, because in school, and we were just talking a little bit about this on break is you get a couple of slides on diabetes and you're like, okay, that's it. These people should be able. And please forgive me if you are a person living with diabetes. But at this point, ignorant time in my life, I said, these people should be able to do this. I don't understand why. Why can't you carb count? Why can't you do this? But, boy, was I humbled when I got the opportunity to be put in the DCH Diabetes and Nutrition Education center as an educator and. And it opened up my world to this community, and I love this community with all my heart. So fast forward over the past 10 to 15 years. We're not counting, but that's where we are Now, I am the program manager at the DCH Diabetes and Nutrition Education center, and I also have one wonderful news. I'm saying it that way because I think I can say it, but we are opening up an endocrinology clinic in the next few weeks. So we have an actual endocrinologist here that's going to join us at DCH and open up an endocrinology clinic. And so I will be taking on that responsibility as well. And if you know anything about the community of diabetes in West Alabama, we have two very wonderful endocrinologists, but that's it. And. And so where my career has led me, today, I get to see how this community is truly going to benefit from diabetes professionals like myself and Dr. Cindy Polito, who's our endocrinologist, coming in and truly caring for this. This community. I don't know if I just summed up my. Myself. [00:11:36] Speaker C: That is impressive. [00:11:39] Speaker B: Yes. [00:11:39] Speaker C: That's exciting. And I want to make note, because we talk about this all the time, that your pathway was not linear. [00:11:46] Speaker D: We [00:11:47] Speaker C: talk about that for our student listeners who feel like, what's wrong with me? Because I don't come right into school knowing exactly what I want to be. And they may change majors, may change pathways. Most of the people who love what they do in their jobs nowadays didn't start out choosing that. And so I'm glad that you shared that with us. [00:12:06] Speaker D: That was. That. That was a roundabout way to say, my mom thought I was making a career out of going to college. Literally, she didn't think I was ever going to get out, but I did. And [00:12:14] Speaker C: there you go. [00:12:15] Speaker B: Yes. I mean, and, you know, listening to you talk about your journey, Cindy, and especially, you know, kind of leading up to where you are now, your passion for the diabetes community is so evident in the way that you're talking about [00:12:32] Speaker C: just [00:12:32] Speaker B: that very, you know, just kind of understated excitement in the tone of your voice as you talked about the endocrinology. You know, just the fact that there's going to be another endocrinologist that's helping the West Alabama area. So I think that that is incredible. [00:12:48] Speaker C: Yeah. Having that passion, especially like you said, 10 to 15 years into it, when most people are like, okay, I got this down pat, you know, this is just another day. Like, you still have that fire. Yeah, I think that's incredible. [00:13:00] Speaker B: And so, you know, knowing that you are at the D Diabetes and Nutrition Education center for our listeners who aren't familiar with that facility, what kind of services do you guys provide? [00:13:11] Speaker D: So we are straight up education. We are built of dietitians and nurses. Majority of us are certified diabetes care and education specialists. That's a mouthful to say that. We specialize in diabetes care and education. We offer one on one sessions to get to know the person, literally meet them where they are. And then we go into educational classes that teach you all the nutrition stuff you could ever want to know. And then at the end of our program, we literally sit back down and we say, okay, you just learned all this stuff. Now how in the world do you do life with it? Because we know there's a difference in just giving someone a sheet of paper and saying, okay, go, go and be that. That's, that's unrealistic and it's not expected. And so we, we want to make sure that we meet the person where they are and the tools that we're giving them, they know how to use in their life and in their walk. And so with these sessions, they're either one on one or in a group setting, depending on the individual. But when I say, you mentioned that passion, my staff, y'. All. I wish I would have brought Marcia Fowler because she is the true epitome of this center. She doesn't mind me sharing this, but she lives with type 1 diabetes. She was actually diagnosed when she was a preteen. She went about two years before she got diabetes education. Her first diabetes education was at the diabetes center where we are now, with a wonderful dietitian who told her she could eat chocolate. And that was the first time somebody told her that in two years. And that night, she went home and ate chocolate. So when I say we're not the food police and we're made up of people who truly understand and empathize with this population, it is truth. It is truth. And she still, today, she's an educator, a nurse educator over there, educating this community. And that's, that's the center. That's, that's how I rounded up there. [00:14:58] Speaker C: Love that. [00:14:59] Speaker B: I know. And [00:15:00] Speaker C: for our listeners who are like, like you said before, you were understanding about diabetes, why is it so hard? Why do we have to have specialized people? It's complex. It is more than just, I mean, it's so. It is so complex. And I know we're going to get into that in a second, but that is why I think having a resource like this in town is so important, because it's not the same as, oh, I think I want to. I think I want to lose five pounds. It's a different. It's a different education, you know, scenario than somebody who is living with diabetes. And so I think that is so important that we have people like you out there in the, in the community, but that it's important that our listeners understand why you're so passionate that we're getting a new person. [00:15:50] Speaker D: Yeah, [00:15:50] Speaker B: yeah. [00:15:52] Speaker D: Many people in the community today cannot get in to see an endocrinologist. If they are, then they're on a four to six to nine month waiting list to get in to see an endocrinologist. And for those of you who don't know, an endocrinologist is, is many more than this. But a diabetes expert, they're the ones that's going to truly know what's going on on a cellular level in your body and be able to find the best treatment approach they can for you. Your primary care physician, they do great job, but when it gets to a point, then they need to pass that on to the expert. And so now our community will have another one of those experts that can help our people living with diabetes. [00:16:29] Speaker C: Yes. And I'm sorry, I don't mean to interrupt you, Sheena. And what we forget is days. You said four to six months. I mean, every day of your life ticks by without you having some specialist help guide you. So it is so important that we have y'. All. [00:16:44] Speaker B: I'm just, I'm honestly just sitting here in awe because, Nika, I don't know about you. I can already tell from this first 10 minute conversation that we're gonna have some really good discussion. I can't wait [00:16:57] Speaker C: for the truth nuggets that she's got that she's gonna drop. And our listeners, I'm so excited to, to learn more. [00:17:03] Speaker B: It is going to be amazing. But, y', all, we got to take another break. You know how it is. But you guys, grab a drink of water, grab a snack, do what you got to do. You are listening to Fit to be tied with Sheena and Na on 90.7, the capstone. [00:17:20] Speaker A: Wvua fm tuscaloosa, [00:17:27] Speaker C: Foreigners, you are listening to Fit to be tied with Sheena and NA on 90.7 the capstone. And we are joined today by our guest, Cindy Huggins, who is a registered dietitian, but also the program manager at DCH Diabetes and Nutrition Education Center. And she is here today to help us talk about Diabetes Awareness Month. [00:17:53] Speaker B: That is right. And, Cindy, just to keep it as a very basic question, what is Diabetes Awareness Month? [00:18:01] Speaker D: A very basic answer. It is a month that we come together and we create as much Loud awareness as we can around what is diabetes, prediabetes, those at risk for having diabetes, anything from the signs and symptoms to how are you managing your diabetes? All the way to where's our cure? We're still working on that, by the way, but it brings awareness to where we are and where we hope to be one day. [00:18:29] Speaker C: Okay, so we're going to go a little bit deeper. How many types of diabetes are there? For our listeners who don't know, [00:18:36] Speaker D: that is a loaded question, actually, right now in the textbooks. What it's going to say is there's basically three that we put into a category at the moment. There's a several more and then some in between. We'll do that on another day. But for majority of the population, they know type one, type two and gestational diabetes. [00:18:58] Speaker C: Okay. [00:18:58] Speaker D: We come back to type one. We're looking at someone who's a pancreas who ideally is supposed to push out insulin. Insulin's that wonderful hormone that takes sugar from the food we eat into our cells to literally give us energy. So if you're a gas tank, you're filling up with gas, you're eating your food, and that food breaks down to energy to get in your cells to actually help you walk, talk, and bre. [00:19:21] Speaker C: Yeah, [00:19:21] Speaker D: that's insulin. Soul job, job. But when somebody lives with type 1 diabetes, it's an autoimmune. Something has attacked those cells on the pancreas, and so they no longer produce that hormone, insulin. [00:19:32] Speaker C: And is that where people have to give themselves shots or have to have a pump? [00:19:36] Speaker D: Correct, correct. So they do have to supplement with insulin. And for type 2 diabetes, we use the term insulin resistant. Their body is making some insulin, but the cells aren't recognizing it. [00:19:49] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:19:50] Speaker D: And so there's, there's a. However, when you look at the kind of, the commonality of it and the treatment plan, you know, lifestyle, food, education, kind of falls hand in hand. Although, of course, you mentioned that wonderful shot or pump. There is wonderful tech out there that can be used for both type 1 and, or type 2 diabetes, whether it be an insulin pump, continuous glucose monitors. The treatment has come a long way. [00:20:20] Speaker C: Okay. [00:20:21] Speaker D: Even in our gestational population, gestational diabetes. So this type of diabetes only happens during pregnancy. And those wonderful pregnancy hormones just really messes up the system and blocks what insulin wants to do in the body. So we will see a dramatic increase in blood sugars, hence the diagnosis of gestational diabetes. Ideally after pregnancy, after we have baby, that goes away. But it does increase the risk for mama to have type 2 diabetes later on in life, if they don't manage their health at that time. [00:20:55] Speaker C: Okay, look at you. And then I heard you say pre diabetes. What is prediabetes? [00:21:00] Speaker D: So pre diabetes is that moment in life, I'm going to call it, where some of our blood numbers, lab values, if you will. You may have heard some wonderful terms like hemoglobin A1C. Isn't it crazy? The doctor can take your blood and look back in the past. That's what this does. They take your blood and it looks like past three months, what has your blood sugar been doing? And it gives us an average, just an old school average. So if that average is sitting up between 5.7 to about 6.4, this tells docs that you are at risk for diabetes, and we need to do some interventions right now. So you may have heard that from your doc. No, it doesn't necessarily mean you're going to see a diagnosis of diabetes, but it does need. We need to pay attention right now to prevent further onset of diabetes. [00:21:47] Speaker C: Okay, so that's kind of your warning shot. [00:21:48] Speaker D: Yep, that's it. [00:21:49] Speaker C: All right. Oh, I love it. Okay, so we have a question about what are some of the common myths or misconceptions about diabetes that you find yourself correcting frequently? [00:22:03] Speaker D: Oh, gosh. Oh, this could be all day. This could be all day. [00:22:06] Speaker B: I have a feeling I have some good stuff. [00:22:10] Speaker D: So I wouldn't sit here and. And just blubber. I asked my staff to give me kind of their tops. And so their top comments were, eating sugar does not cause diabetes. [00:22:22] Speaker C: Okay, so when we were kids, and they would say, you keep eating that candy, you're gonna get diabetes. That's [00:22:27] Speaker D: not true. That's no good. No, no bueno. No, no, no. Eating sugar does not cause diabetes. Remember, it's that hormone level, insulin issue, not a sugar issue. Yes. To manage diabetes, we have to watch the amount and the types of sugar that we do each. But it's not a sugar problem. It's an insulin problem. [00:22:47] Speaker C: Okay, and so you explained that in type one, something is attacked, and in a type two, we have it, but the. The cells just don't want to. Just don't want to hang out with [00:22:59] Speaker D: it. They're just resistant. That. That word, resistant. [00:23:01] Speaker C: Okay, so is that why they say type 2 diabetes could be reversed? [00:23:06] Speaker D: So we don't like to use that word, reverse or reversible. It. It's a little bit misleading. [00:23:12] Speaker C: Okay, [00:23:13] Speaker D: let me get a little serious here for a minute, all right? When we're diagnosed with diabetes, it is a chronic disease. Basic definition of chronic disease means it's a progressive disease and it has opportunity to get worse over time. Now you can manage it and live a wonderful, high quality life. However, you're still living with a chronic disease and aging is not in our favor, and we know that. So the body slows down with what it wants to do every second of every day. I feel like now in my older life here. And so with that, we have to tell people that when you look at controlling your blood sugars to the best of your ability, you don't need medication or insulin. We define that as remission. [00:24:02] Speaker C: Okay. [00:24:03] Speaker D: So they have to be off oral medications, off insulin for about three to six months, I believe is the proper definition. And then they will be considered in remission there. Reversible. We're not necessarily able to go back and change what's already been done, unfortunately, there. So a little bit mis termed there. I hear out in the community a lot that we try to create remission is the word we want to use. And it's achievable. It is achievable. [00:24:34] Speaker B: Yeah. No, I just, I mean, I think even that nugget alone, because, you know, I certainly hear people say, like, oh, it's the reversible one. And so, you know, when you're getting down to the nitty gritty of like, the technicalities of it, that's really helpful for people to understand. And now I'm sure you have a gazillion more in your back pocket of some other things you gotta correct folks on. So tell me what else your staff has kind of voted in the top. [00:25:01] Speaker D: Well, okay, so we also have this little nitpicky thing when we hear people say something along the lines of, peanut butter helps to bring my blood sugar up. So those of you who may or may not know, when we have low blood sugar, we try to find a sugar source to bring that blood sugar up. And this could be a person living with diabetes or without. But somewhere along the way, people have started using peanut butter. That's so far from the truth, we can't scream it enough. We literally printed it in our education materials for the first day they come. Peanut butter does not raise your blood sugars, nor does mustard, by the way. But yeah, [00:25:38] Speaker B: I'm fascinated. Now, [00:25:39] Speaker C: mustard is for when you're electric electrolytes, correct? [00:25:42] Speaker D: I mean, if you [00:25:43] Speaker C: want to. Because. Well, yeah, because on the sidelines we see sometimes like [00:25:47] Speaker B: football players, cramps, like. Yeah, but [00:25:50] Speaker C: okay, but they got that confused with sugar. That's okay. That's okay. [00:25:53] Speaker D: You're correcting it. Yeah, that. Yes. Where do we do a lot of correcting with the peanut butter? It's mostly a fat source with a little bit of protein in there. And yes, there is sugar in it, but the fat and the protein takes, takes control. So we're not really getting that sugar. And so another one would be that because I live with diabetes, I can't eat sugar. This is completely untrue. Carbohydrates have gotten a bad rap out there, and I wish we could all correct it at one time. But carbs are your energy. Literally. It does come down to the type of carbohydrate we put in our body most of the time. Yes, we want quality, high fiber, good quality carbohydrates, and we do want to limit some of those fast acting carbohydrates. But people with diabetes are able to eat these things as well and control their blood sugars with education from our center. [00:26:45] Speaker B: So [00:26:45] Speaker C: you can have a piece of your own birthday cake. [00:26:48] Speaker D: You sure can. [00:26:48] Speaker C: There you go. [00:26:49] Speaker B: Well, I'd love to paint a picture that I know that we have all known somebody who's had this experience where say it's, you know who I was gonna say it's 1997. It could be any year. You know, somebody goes to their doctor who, you know, they've seen forever and ever and ever, they find out they have diabetes and then their doctor says, well, just, just don't eat sugar, don't eat anything white, don't eat whatever. And then when somebody is finally going to see a diabetes expert, whether it is a dietitian or a nurse or anyone else who's a certified diabetes educator, and you're having to basically undo that information that they got from their trusted family physician that they've been with for 45 plus years. And it's like, well, Dr. Jones said, I can't be eating bread. And then you're having to backtrack and correct all that. Is that the bane of your existence? Sometimes [00:27:50] Speaker D: it can be, but it's a joyful moment. You get to give back foods to these, to these people that they thought they lost forever. So again, we're not the food police. My goal is to get you out of my office eating the things you like to eat, just understanding what they do in the body. And so our wonderful primary care physicians that take care of us give them that little quick fix. And then when they get to us, we slowly undo it and unlearn it so that they can Eat again. [00:28:18] Speaker C: Okay. Right there. Right there's the key word when they get to y'. All. So people were educating you to let you know that it's not enough to Google it yourself or just listen to your primary care doctor. Even though they're wonderful, like you said, an endocrinologist, they hand them off to a specialist, they need to hand them off to you guys. And so when someone says you need to go see a dietitian or a certified, you know, diabetes education specialist, don't be like, I can just Google this myself. Go to you guys. Like, y' all are the specialists. That's going to give them so much of their quality of life back. [00:28:57] Speaker D: That's it. And, and there's no, there's no pretty way to wrap that up and put a bow on it and sell it to someone, right? Because this is their life. They're making more time. We know that to, to take off work, take away from school, to come and sit down with yet another. And we completely understand that. But we want you to know we're the ones that are gonna meet you more than halfway. We're the ones that are gonna help you fight through those, those lows, those highs, those sideways blood sugars, whatever they may be, and help you troubleshoot. It's not a clinical setting at all. It's actually a very fun setting, if I can use that word, at our education center. And we do, we like to have fun and we like to let our, our participants know that we're human too. And we know that life happens. And we, we don't expect them to, you know, drop everything and show up. We just know, like to let them know that we're there for them whenever they need us. [00:29:53] Speaker C: So tell me if this is a myth or a truth. When you're diagnosed with a life changing chronic disease, so much of your power feels like it's taken away. When they come back to, when they come to see y', all, you empower them. [00:30:05] Speaker D: That's, that's good. [00:30:06] Speaker C: Empower them to keep, get back control of their life. [00:30:11] Speaker D: We did. We had a participant come through and said she thought she was going to eat cotton balls and grass the rest of her life. Literally. We wrote this down and she. And believe it or not, a lot of people leave crying. And I know that sounds weird and silly, but like you said, this is life. I mean, [00:30:26] Speaker B: this [00:30:26] Speaker D: is life changing. So you will not be eating cotton balls and grass the rest of your life. No, [00:30:31] Speaker B: y', all, I've been so dialed in on this conversation, and I'M like, oh, we gotta take a break. But y'. All. Well, clearly I'm invested, but we're going to take a break. But rest assured, you guys, we are going to continue this conversation. You are listening to Fit to be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7, the Capstone. [00:30:55] Speaker A: Wvuafm tuscaloosa. [00:31:06] Speaker D: Happy Sunday, y'. All. You are listening to Fit [00:31:08] Speaker C: to [00:31:08] Speaker D: be tied with Sheena and Neeka [00:31:10] Speaker C: on [00:31:10] Speaker D: 90.7, the [00:31:11] Speaker C: capstone. [00:31:11] Speaker B: That's right. And if you are just now joining us, man, oh, man, we say this so many times, but we. We mean it even more than usual today. You gotta go back and listen to those previous segments because we have had the most fantastic conversation with Cindy Huggins, who is the program manager at DCH Diabetes and Nutrition Education Center. And, Cindy, I just have to go back to our first seg with you when you were mentioning your credential as a CDCEs, and I feel like that has changed over the years because I feel like at one point in time, it's like, certified diabetes educator, and now the acronym has changed. So please repeat it for me because I just want to be well informed. [00:31:58] Speaker D: Sure. So we used to be certified diabetes educator, and then they wanted to put some other words in there to express what we do and how we do it. So we came up with. Or not myself, but certified diabetes care and education specialist. Because we care. That's how I. That's how I pictured the commercial. [00:32:19] Speaker B: Because [00:32:19] Speaker D: we care. [00:32:20] Speaker B: With hand motions, y'. All. [00:32:22] Speaker D: Because we care there. And, you know, ideally, the story behind that was to help providers really understand what we do. I'm not sure any. Any, you know, acronym or words can truly ever sum that up, though. [00:32:36] Speaker B: No. Thank you for that. And again, [00:32:39] Speaker C: and is that additional training after you have your. You get your license to be a registered dietitian? [00:32:44] Speaker D: Sure. Yes. You have to be practicing for at least a thousand hours and then sit for a wonderful exam. [00:32:49] Speaker B: See, y'. [00:32:50] Speaker C: All. So what I'm hearing is, you know, your stuff [00:32:52] Speaker D: a little bit. Okay. [00:32:54] Speaker B: Just a little bit. [00:32:55] Speaker C: Just a little bit. So what I'm also hearing is it's. It's. You didn't get it from social media? [00:33:01] Speaker D: No. No, not at all. [00:33:02] Speaker C: Okay. [00:33:03] Speaker D: Not even the Internet. [00:33:05] Speaker B: Now, are. Are there any unhinged things about diabetes that are shared on social media that you're just like, oh, my Atlanta. [00:33:15] Speaker D: Okay. Okay. The biggest one, my stuff and I were talking about, and I don't know. I don't know their names, so I'm not calling them out. But there is a family of persons with diabetes. They all live with type 1 diabetes, and they share needles. [00:33:28] Speaker C: No, I'm sorry, [00:33:30] Speaker D: y'. All. [00:33:30] Speaker B: I [00:33:31] Speaker D: need [00:33:32] Speaker C: the public health person in me. Just every. Everything just. [00:33:35] Speaker D: It's disturbing. It [00:33:36] Speaker C: just. I just. I just. I just died a [00:33:38] Speaker D: little bit [00:33:38] Speaker C: on the inside. [00:33:39] Speaker D: Big influencers. And they will sit down at a meal and go, how many units do you need? Crank it up, give it. And then throw it over and give it to their sister. Brother. I don't know. But, y', all, we can't. We can't. We can't. [00:33:51] Speaker C: Okay. I have to. Right quick, just in case you're like, well, but my family doesn't have a disease or anything. You have bacteria living on your skin, and when you puncture that skin, that bacteria can go in. And so now that bacteria is on the needle. So it. We're not worried so much now about the hepatitis B and C and D, E, F, G, we're worried about. Okay, [00:34:17] Speaker D: I can't even. I can't even. But no, that's it. There's so many things wrong with that. But ultimately, again, we don't. We don't share needles. [00:34:23] Speaker C: No. [00:34:23] Speaker D: We change out the needle every time we administer a new dose of Even on yourself. Yep, that's it. That's it. [00:34:28] Speaker C: Because of that bacteria that's on your skin. [00:34:30] Speaker D: That's it. [00:34:30] Speaker C: Okay. [00:34:31] Speaker D: And those needles get dull and they start to hurt. So there's so many reasons. [00:34:34] Speaker B: Oh, I just. [00:34:36] Speaker C: And if it's a cost issue, there are programs [00:34:38] Speaker D: out there [00:34:39] Speaker C: that can help you. [00:34:40] Speaker D: That's right, Definitely. So. And contact. I don't know. Contact me. I don't know. I will help you get some needles if you need be. Because. Yes, that's exactly. But [00:34:48] Speaker C: there's needle exchange programs in states, and. But I mean, you can let your doctor, your pharmacist, we can contact the United Way. We can get somebody that know somebody to [00:34:58] Speaker D: get you a [00:34:59] Speaker C: needle, if that's what you need. [00:35:00] Speaker D: Absolutely, absolutely. [00:35:03] Speaker B: Y'. All. I'm just shook. I'm just shook. [00:35:05] Speaker C: Did you see my entire body recoil? [00:35:08] Speaker B: Like, okay, so, you know, as we start thinking about solutions and everyday lifestyle, you know, even. Just so you know, many of our listeners are University of Alabama students. And so, you know, as we start thinking about ways that students can support their blood sugar when balancing classes, work stress, and irregular schedules, Cindy, what would you. What would you say to a student regardless of whether or not they have diabetes? You know, what are just some best practices with keeping that blood sugar stable, Man? [00:35:41] Speaker D: No, that's a great, great big question. And of course I'm going to answer with first, seek out a registered dietitian in education, one that will help support you in this and help you take the thinking and the planning out of it. And so within that education, what we're always promoting, and I know it's very difficult for students, but being consist in schedule, trying not to skip meals. [00:36:05] Speaker B: Now [00:36:05] Speaker D: when we think of meals, yes, we would love for it to be that wonderfully balanced plate where you sit down and you enjoy the time and use that intuitive eating skill set to, to take in that meal. But we know the reality is you might not be able to do that. So being able to pair quick snacks you can grab around campus or prepare in advance, whether that be, you know, a small apple, a handful of nuts, something that you can take with you that's non perishable, these will set you up for success throughout the semester. [00:36:37] Speaker C: Okay, so I'm loving that. I'm loving that. So give us a couple more snack ideas. [00:36:44] Speaker D: Okay, so I'm a big hummus person myself. I don't know if y' all are. So they have the pre packaged containers of hummus and we like to pair them either with carrots or celery and or crackers out there if you like a bit of a crunch in that, go towards that realm. So hummus, carrots, celery, even cucumbers there. And then also we kind of just go back to what I call the adult kitty meals. What are they called lunchables there? They actually do sell a little bitty adult lunchables that have grapes and cheese cubes, even a tablespoon of peanut butter that does not raise your blood sugars in there. A whole boiled egg on there. So those prepackaged things may look a little weird and off, but it's actually providing you a good mixture of nutritional. [00:37:33] Speaker C: What about for my friends who like to eat yogurt on the way to class? I see sometimes people eating yogurt. What's a good thing to pair with that? Is there anything or is that a good standalone snack? [00:37:41] Speaker D: So I had a student once that actually came in with her Greek vanilla yogurt and her I'm keep referring back to peanut butter. It doesn't raise your blood sugars. But she would take your her tablespoon of peanut butter and mix it in with her vanilla yogurt and it was actually amazing tasting. So she just added a little bit more heart healthy fats and protein to her Greek yogurt. She liked the smooth Texture. She wasn't a crunchy person. But I do know that when we have things like some high fiber granola that we can throw in there, high fiber cereals to throw in, the yogurts, that actually helps you make you feel fuller, longer even sometimes can kind of trick the brain with. You're eating a little bit more that's in your head, your hands. Because let's face it, eating one thing of yogurt is like eating air. [00:38:23] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:38:24] Speaker D: It's just not going to hold a person. [00:38:26] Speaker C: Yeah. And when you're chewing and chomping, it makes you psychologically [00:38:29] Speaker D: think I'm doing more. I think [00:38:31] Speaker C: so, yeah. [00:38:31] Speaker B: Oh, yeah. [00:38:32] Speaker C: Okay. Those are awesome ideas. So like you said, thank things that, you know, you don't really have to prepare if you don't. If you're living in a dorm and don't have anything but like a microwave, [00:38:43] Speaker B: you know. Well, you know, and thinking about just the kinds of busy lives that our students have, you know, I would assume a couple or more than a couple probably have some lack of sleep. Maybe they get stressed out sometimes, you know, maybe they're pulling an all nighter. Do behavioral factors like that make our blood sugar wonky? [00:39:06] Speaker D: Y' all know it does. Y' all know it does. I know y' all have had other experts on here talking about such things, but. Exactly right. We're going back to looking at hormones. You know, cortisol, it's there, it's going to spike when you got the stress, when you've got lack of sleep. And that also is going to push blood sugars up. Um, so as much as we don't think we need that sleep or that rest or we think stretching it through the night to get those last few chapters of studying and it's, it's truly doing more, more damage than good in that time for your body and your blood sugar levels. [00:39:40] Speaker C: And I know again, talking with any population, you know, we, we say my alcohol in moderation if you choose to partake. How does alcohol affect our blood sugar levels? [00:39:54] Speaker D: Well, everybody differently. I'm going to start with saying ultimately the biggest risk we're going to deal with is very low hypothesis hypoglycemia levels here, simply because depending on how much alcohol we take in, depending on what we're mixing the alcohol with. One of my best opportunities as a dietitian was with a student who was diagnosed when she was 20 and she was about to turn 21 and she still wanted to enjoy, you know, that tradition of turning 21. So we literally mapped out 24 hours of her day, day. Brought in her friends to educate her, help her check her blood sugars, make sure she's eating, make sure she's not consuming too much alcohol, but she's able to as an adult drink responsibly at that time. And so it does take looking at, in, in all different directions. But if someone's going to choose to drink and they live with diabetes, number one, please stay away from yes. The high, what I call the girly drinks, the high sugar, fast, quick acting sugars, stick with as close to down to I say natural roots as you can and eat and drink responsibly in that keeping volume low. [00:41:06] Speaker C: Okay. [00:41:06] Speaker D: Is that truth? [00:41:08] Speaker C: No, it's. Yeah. I mean it's like I love it. You can, you can incorporate it in [00:41:12] Speaker D: but [00:41:12] Speaker C: you got to have a plan. [00:41:13] Speaker D: You gotta have a plan. [00:41:14] Speaker B: Now we, I'm gonna go to knowledge, we gotta go on a break. But before we go on that break I want to go ahead and selfishly ask for our listeners. When should someone consider getting screened for diabetes or pre diabetes? Like are there certain things that they might feel or observe about themselves that it's like I wonder, I wonder if that has to do with my blood sugar. [00:41:36] Speaker D: Absolutely. We need to know if you have a family who has family members with diabetes type 1 or type 2, you are at risk. So that's number one there. Number two, if you've had a recent weight fluctuation where you've gained weight, whether it be you know, five to ten pounds or more, it's not normal and you're not feeling yourself, we need to go ahead and get checked. Sudden changes in I say mood on appetite but really what I'm saying is you're just feeling yuck. You're feeling what I'm going to determine a non scientific word. You're just feeling gross. And you may hear people refer to as brain fog something in that, you know there we need to get some blood checked to make sure those blood sugars aren't going a little bit too crazy there. But ultimately go to the doctor. Go to the doctor. Primary care is so important that I see most of my youngins out there and that's the college kids, that's my youngins on there is they, they move away from, they come to campus and they just don't follow up with a doctor. [00:42:42] Speaker B: We [00:42:42] Speaker D: just need to remember that annual visit to the doctor is important and that's where they're ultimately going to check these numbers and you have a person you can go to to discuss Things like, I'm feeling just not my stuff myself. And they know you, and they'll know what to do with you. [00:43:00] Speaker B: Dang, y', all, I clear. I'm already like, okay, we've got to bring you in for part two because there's just so much to talk about. But, y', all, we're gonna take a break, but we're gonna have Cindy close out the show with us. You guys are listening to Fit to Be tied with Sheena and Na on 90.7, the capstone. [00:43:19] Speaker A: Double wvuafm tuscaloosa. [00:43:29] Speaker C: Thanks for listening, y'. All. You've been listening to Fit to be tied with Sheena and Neeka on 90.7, the capstone. [00:43:34] Speaker B: That's right. And today we have had the most phenomenal conversation with Cindy Huggins, who is program manager, registered. Registered dietitian. Excuse me. And certified diabetes care and education specialist list. Yay. At the DCH Diabetes and Nutrition Education Center. Cindy, just thank you for dropping all the knowledge on us today. [00:43:58] Speaker D: I'm so glad to do it. [00:44:00] Speaker B: Well, okay, so we mentioned this during the break. You know, we're talking about, okay, how are we going to kind of land the plane? On all of our conversation, I want to ask if listeners remember only one thing from today's conversation with you. What do you want it to be? [00:44:16] Speaker D: That's. That's. That's just a loaded question. There's so many things. There's so many things. And just like I do to myself, I'm like, 30 seconds. Tell me what you got. And so in. In this moment, I would say an understanding that diabetes is no one's fault. Type 1, type 2 gestational diabetes is not your fault. And I think we need to start changing the way we think about diabetes and remove that stigma that's out there so that people living with diabetes feel more comfortable coming to get education, talking to others about their disease, and we don't have to keep it so siloed. [00:44:54] Speaker C: Okay. [00:44:55] Speaker B: I. Yes. [00:44:56] Speaker C: Yes. [00:44:56] Speaker B: I mean, you know, because when you were saying that, I'm like, that is so true. Because I just think of, like, the affect of. Of my patients in the past when I've had the opportunity to work one on one with patients where there's just that. That you can just tell in the body language, like, there's this weight of, like, I know I did this to myself, and I'm like, no, you did not. Right. You know, and that is so tough. And so the fact that that is, you know, that's the nugget that you want to leave listeners with is huge. And Cindy, I've been mentioning this entire show, kind of off break that I wanted to use this time to acknowledge that you have had quite the history with, with Podcast Live too. Can you tell our listener all of the different things that you have podcasted about over the years? [00:45:47] Speaker D: I mean, you name it, I've been there. I think from Pokemon Go, when it hit to, to general nutrition advice, to our latest and greatest with one of my educators, Marcia Fowler, the Good diabetes podcast and 30 second bites with dietitian. Cindy was my first love. And that's where I got that. You got 30 seconds. Tell me what you got mentality. Because when you sit down to do a podcast, it's overwhelming. [00:46:13] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:46:13] Speaker D: And I would get so lost in it, I'd be like, what did I just recorded for three hours? I don't know what I said. So finally I said, heck, if I have 30 seconds, here's what I got. And on. And lo and behold, that's, that's, that was my first journey starting podcasting and now into the diabetes world with the good diabetes podcast. Just a quick tip. There is no good, there is no bad diabetes. And that's kind of the, the play on words. There is Marsha, who lives with type 1 diabetes. People say, say, oh, you've got the bad diabetes. And she's like, where's the good diabetes? [00:46:44] Speaker B: Yeah, it's like, excuse me. [00:46:46] Speaker C: Yeah, [00:46:46] Speaker D: where's that? So that's our play, play on that right there, [00:46:50] Speaker B: man. Well, I just, I mean, Nika, I, I feel confident you'd be up for it, but we gotta have Cindy back on again. [00:46:57] Speaker C: Yeah, I have so many more questions. I mean, I am just, you know, I, I, I'm just learning so much. And I know our listeners are too, and it, and it's legit, legit evidence based, solid advice. It's not anything that, you know, she, she got off the back of, you know, People magazine, standing in line at the grocery store like, it's, you can trust what you hear from her today is the real, real. Yeah, [00:47:25] Speaker D: I agree, I agree. [00:47:26] Speaker B: She got her learning on. [00:47:28] Speaker D: Yeah, [00:47:28] Speaker C: she got her some education. [00:47:30] Speaker B: Well, y', all, with that said, just thank y' all for such a wonderful episode today, listeners. Thank y' all for being with us. We will catch you next week. You have been listening to Fit to Be tied with Sheena and Nika on 90.7, the capstone. [00:47:51] Speaker A: Wvuafm Tuscaloosa.