Interweb jumble #13

It’s gloomy in Melbourne today. I have tights on for the first time in months and my hair is now frizzing thanks to the rain I was caught in as I ran next door for a coffee. (The silver lining in all of this is that there is fabulous coffee right next door to my new office. Also, extra silver lining is that I can see the weather out of my beautiful window. The not-so-silver-lining is that I am reminded that I am fool, because window = seeing rainy weather and yet I still forgot to take an umbrella…)

So here are some things that are keeping me either amused, happy, annoyed, interested, fascinated and heaps of other things too!

Roses spared and children saved

Today, the Spare A Rose Facebook page announced that 376 children would be benefitting from people’s generous donations this Valentine’s Day.

It’s not too late to make a donation, or even consider making a monthly donation throughout the year. AUD$6 each month equals a month of insulin for a kid who would otherwise not be able to afford it.

While this was the focus of our Valentine’s Day, there was still a lot of baking. Because I love a heart shaped cookie. Or giant brownie. And sprinkles.

Still the wrong name for this week

I said it last year and I maintain that the Dietitians Association of Australia have got it wrong naming this week ‘Healthy Weight Week’.

I think that the name misses the mark because it focuses on weight and not health. The overall aim of the week is to encourage people to cook more at home to achieve a healthy weight. Here’s just a little of the conversation with the DAA (after they read my post last year) on Twitter:

I think that this really does a disservice to the role of dietitians in healthcare. I am of a healthy weight, but have benefitted from the expertise of dietitians in the past.

The name of this week turns me off actually wanting to participate in any way, even though there are some terrific initiatives. What are your thoughts on this one?

In the genes

Why do some people develop diabetes-related complications and others don’t? We’re told that ‘control’ is the reason, but we also know that some people develop complications, despite years of what is considered ‘good control’ while others who struggle to reach targets don’t.

This study’s findings suggests that particular genetic variations are involved in the development of retinopathy and nephropathy.

Things I wish I knew

I learn new things about diabetes each and every day. But how much easier it would have been while navigating this annoying bloody path to have known stuff earlier on. Diabetes UK has released a new book, 100 THINGS I WISH I’D KNOWN ABOUT LIVING WITH DIABETES, which includes information collected from over 1,000 people with diabetes with input from clinicians. The final 100 were selected by people with diabetes, (nice engagement there!), who chose the tips they thought most useful.

Oh – and while talking about Diabetes UK: Happy Birthday! They turn 82 years old this week.

New (to Australia) Tech

Looks like Australia is about to catch up to our friends in the EU who have had access to Freestyle Libre Flash Monitoring. The Flash website went live this week. More details – such as cost and release date – are yet to come, but you can register your interest. Have a look and register your interest.

And while we’re talking new tech in Australia, a couple of weeks ago, the Aussie launch details of the Dexcom G5 were announced. You can download the app (iOS only) which is already available from the App Store, although you won’t be able to use it until you are hooked up to a G5. The App has the ‘Share’ capability which means that you can (just as it says!) share your data with others.

Rock on

Last week, I was sitting at the front of our house, enjoying the sunshine and my day off, and listening to Live Fast, Diabetes, the new song from Adelaide punk/rock band, Grenadiers.

A very crotchety woman walked by, stopped as she heard the music, and scolded me with this nugget of wisdom: ‘You’re too old to be listening to that noise.’

Yeah, we know

Science: ‘Apparently BGLs are lower in warm weather.’

PWD: ‘Ah, yeah. We know. We’ve known for ages….’

Love it when evidence catches up!

And finally….

It’s Tuesday. Do the #OzDOC tweet chat! Tonight at 8.30pm AEDT.