Today is World Diabetes Day and November is National Diabetes Month

Happy World Diabetes Day! I begin with Enchanted Insights explaining World Diabetes Day (14 November) - Why do We Celebrate and How to Celebrate - History and Purpose.

World Diabetes Day became an official United Nations Day in 2006 with the passage of United Nation Resolution 61/225. It is marked every year on 14 November, the birthday of Sir Frederick Banting, who co-discovered insulin along with Charles Best in 1922.

That's a good description of the history of the holiday and why it's observed today. For a brief summary of the disease and its effects, I turn to CNA's World Diabetes Day: The lowdown on the chronic disease.

On average, a person who has diabetes thinks about their disease every 20 minutes every day of their life. On World Diabetes Day which falls on Nov 14, CNA's Teresa Tang explains what the different types of diabetes are and what they mean.

I'm a diabetic and I can attest that I think about my condition an average of every 20 minutes throughout the day.* I consider it to be a central organizing fact of my life. Oddly enough, I think it has focused me and improved my mental health. I now have a real threat to concentrate my attention on and consider every day a small victory over death.

Not only is today World Diabetes Day, it's NATIONAL DIABETES MONTH | November - National Day Calendar.


Here's the description of National Diabetes Month from the National Day Calendar website.

In November, National Diabetes Month focuses attention on the growing cost of diabetes on American's health. From the physical, emotional, and social effects to the financial and damaging health consequences, diabetes impacts more than 30 million people in the United States. Also known as American Diabetes Month, the month focus on making healthy changes and reducing the risk of type 2 diabetes.
...
Help prevent type 2 diabetes. Learn about the causes of type 1 diabetes and how to control it. Find out how new medications are making it easier to control blood sugar and insulin levels. Learn about a healthy diet, exercise, and how to control diabetes. Known your number and get involved. If you have questions about your diabetes, be sure to speak with your doctor. They are your best resource for staying in control. Use #NationalDiabetesMonth to post on social media.

All good advice. Trust me, I'm a diabetic, so I know.

That's it for a day devoted to a cause important to me. Stay tuned for America Recycles Day, another day about a cause important to me.

*Night is another matter. I don't recall ever dreaming about diabetes. Instead, I dream about driving. That's not an improvement; all those dreams involve loss of control and they scare me. Then I wake up and realize it was just a dream. None of it happened outside my head. Whew!