Show #1103
Original Air Date: October 11th, 2007
There's no way around it: many Americans today are too heavy. Chronic diseases and conditions related to weight are major concerns in our country today. A couple of these public health problems -- Type 2 diabetes and obesity -- go hand-in-hand, and they're reaching epidemic proportions worldwide. In nearly every developed society, diabetes is ranked among the leading causes of blindness, kidney failure and lower limb amputation. It can even be fatal. Over 200,000 people die each year of diabetes-related complications.
A deeper look at the statistics is even more sobering. In America alone, diabetes affects over 20 million people, and Type 2 diabetes accounts for about 90 percent of those individuals. What's more, many people with Type 2 diabetes don't even know that they have it. The obesity numbers aren't any brighter. Less than half of American adults are at a healthy weight, and approximately one-third of American adults are obese.
The numbers are staggering and alarming. But there is good news. Although there is no cure for Type 2 diabetes, health care professionals and researchers are making strides. Experts know there is a connection between Type 2 diabetes and genetic make-up, age, and even race. They're looking at ways to prevent obesity. Knowing these cause-and-effect relationships has led experts to believe that there are ways to potentially prevent this deadly epidemic from spreading or even occurring.
This week on "Consider This...," experts will tell us who's at risk and the new and exciting therapies that are being developed to treat these diseases. We'll be joined by Dr. James Lane, medical director of The Nebraska Medical Center Diabetes Center; Mark Stubbs, Executive Director of the Nebraska Chapter of the American Diabetes Association; and Sidnee Mercer, a 15 year old with Type 1 diabetes.
Questions or Comments about Consider This... ? We'd like to hear from you! Email us at considerthis@tvmail.unomaha.edu
Consider This... available in:
Need the software?
Back to the Consider This... Main Page
|
All you need to watch Consider This... on the web is:
1. a computer You'll need QuickTime 4, RealPlayer or Windows Media Player to watch the show. The players listed below are available in versions for both Windows and Macintosh. Please be sure that your software is up-to-date. |
||
| QuickTime Player is available free from Apple. |  |
|
|
|
RealPlayer is available from RealNetworks and is free for the basic version. |  |
|
|
Windows Media Player is free for both Windows and Mac. |  |
To the Top