The aging of the population along with the “Obesity Epidemic” will only intensify it’s impact.  Diabetes is a deadly and debilitating disease.  Some of the  factors that increase the risk of diabetes are  age, (over 45) ethnicity, obesity, lack of physical activity, family history, hypertension, and cholesterol.
                                                                                                       
Diabetes is associated with serious complications such as complications of the heart and circulation.  This can lead to coronary artery disease, heart attack and stroke as well as heart failure.  Kidney disease is a very serious complication of Diabetes and over time can lead to kidney failure.  Neuropathy, another complication affects nerve sensation.  It begins in the fingers and toes and moves up the arms and legs.  The symptoms of Neuropathy are tingling, weakness, burning sensations and loss of the sense of warm and cold, numbness and deep pain.  Twenty percent to 40% of older adults with Diabetes have neuropathy, peripheral vascular disease, or both, putting them at increased risk for foot complications such as ulcerated or infected feet, or loss of limb. 

This population is more likely to be dependent on caregivers for basic daily tasks, they have poor mobility and are often incontinent.
 
Diabetes can cause Retinopathy and eye complications and accounts for 12,000 to 24,000 of new cases of blindness annually.  Studies also indicate that patients with type 2 Diabetics face a higher than average risk of developing dementia as well as problems with attention and memory.

People with Diabetes face a higher risk for the flu and its complications including pneumonia.  Diabetes doubles the risk of depression and it also reduces the bone quality. Some of the other complications of Diabetes can include a high risk of hearing loss and  fatty liver disease.  Women with type 2 diabetes face a higher risk of uterine cancer if they are obese and both men and women with Diabetes seem to have a higher risk of colon and rectal cancer.  Lastly, there is evidence that links periodontal disease to Diabetes.

Think in terms of all of these diseases and illness that are associated with Diabetes. Think of all of them in terms of our activities of daily living, the things we must be able to do for ourselves to get through each day (bathing, dressing, eating, toileting, continence, transferring) and how a debilitating disease such as  Diabetes will affect our ability to perform them.  Do you have a parent or a sibling with Diabetes?

Currently, at least 80% of older Americans are living with chronic and disabling diseases such as Diabetes and at least 50% have a minimum of two. About 22 million U. S. Households (usually one in every four households) are involved in caring for someone age 50 or older and the number is expected to rise to 39 million by 2008.  Older caregivers who have a history of chronic illness themselves and caregiving-related stress have a 63% higher death rate than persons who are not caregivers.

Today you can’t pick up a newspaper or magazine without reading about cuts in Medicare and Medicaid and increases in the cost of health care in general. This society cannot afford to give it’s members the care they need and deserve (regardless of age).

The message coming from Washington is “personal responsibility”.   Government programs that have been designed to help those truly in need should be kept intact so they can continue to do just that.

Long-Term Care insurance should be a consideration whether a person is age 30 or 75.  If you have researched Long-Term Care insurance and have decided to “take a pass” it IS time to reconsider. The window of opportunity is closing, both from an insurability and a cost perspective. If you have a family history of Diabetes or you  have already been diagnosed with Diabetes this may be the time to re-visit the product.  This does not apply only to Diabetes (any chronic illness) 

Do not assume that you are not insurable.  Make some more telephone calls and ask some more questions.  Remember, Patient power comes from the ability to pay privately.

Dorothy McMahon is a Certified Senior  Advisor and a Certified Long-Term Care Insurance Specialist she  can be reached at 248-844-9787 or e-mail her at ltcinsusa@aol.com.