Just read this interesting article that I linked to from Diabetic News Hound. It says that everything about being diabetic is affected by the heat, which they define at a wimpy 80-90 degrees. (The researchers were distressed to learn that folks in Phoenix didn’t think it was too hot until it pased 100 - frankly, that shouldn’t be too much of a surprise, but I digress.) Insulin, meds, strips, and meters were all affected by heat. I thought it was an interesting read. http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/565787/?sc=rsmn&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NewswiseMednews+%28Newswise%3A+MedNews%29
That’s scary… to me it’s not hot till it passes body temp 98 degrees. I’ll go outside and ride my bike/run around for hours and not think about the heat…
I live in S FL. I don’t leave my supplies in the car or sitting in the hot sun, but it is all exposed to some high heat just being with me as I go about my day. I’ve not noticed a problem but I was interested to read about the issue on Chris’ site. Should I be doing something differently?
I use less basal insulin ( my pumps basal settings ) , when temps rise …so it affects my bod as well
Well, As soon as Temps start hitting the 80’s outside, I have a small Zipper Pouch in Vynil and it has a small Refreezable Ice bag in it and the Pen Needle goes in it when I go out…
It’s good for several Hours
Frio Paks work as well
If want to see what temps are In your car, Pockets, etc.? Just Get a Kitchen type Thermoeter and test around… You’d be amaze at how warm and hot it gets
and it only takes a Few Min. to Cook your insulin
Do you loose Power frequently? And for long times? Get a small styrofoamCooler and some refreezeable IcePaks,… Keep the Paks in the Freezer.
Another last resort is in water…Kitchen or Bathroom Sink
For Opened Bottles, etc., get a waterproof Container
Was on a Camping trip, kept it in a nearby Spring- temp tested in the 50’s all the time
I have thought about power outages as hurricane season is upon us. I have ice packs in the freezer.
This is just ridiculous.
“People with diabetes have an impaired ability to sweat, which predisposes them to heat-related illness, as do uncontrolled, high blood sugars,” Nassar said.
Dr. Nassar seems to be ill-informed - I sweat just as much walking around Houston as a diabetic as I did before the diagnosis. I’m not really sure where this comes from, but I’ll gladly let Dr. Nassar feel my clothes after a lovely morning of yardwork in the soupy Houston heat or after a jog during the “driest” part of the day. I’ve made it through 3 summers in Houston as a diabetic with no ill effects yet. Seems this article is a little over-dramatic.
He must be refering to people with certain neuropathetic complications, not all diabetics.
One of my first symptoms of diabetes, way early, was an impaired ability to sweat. This problem leads one to be really overheated in hot weather before anyone else is feeling the heat. Now, twenty some years later, I still don’t sweat much in hot weather, but sweat like crazy when I go high or low!
When I read the article, I didn’t give a lot of though to the part about impaired sweating, but now that you’ve commented Trudy, I realize that my daughter gets hot more easily than seems reasonable, and she has a hard time cooling down. Interesting. . . . .
Impaired sweating is a form of autonomic neuropathy. I would think it unlikely that your daughter is having this issue already.
I’ve been on insulin for just over a year and half now. I’m in southern NM and we are having temps over 100. Summer arrived early this year and caught me off guard!!! Last week I “fried” my first vial of insulin. I usually leave my Levemir out during cooler weather as it stings a bit to inject it cold, straight from the fridge. The house got hotter than I thought while I was at work. Suddenly my numbers were around 250+ even with the usual bolus doses after eating. I finally figured it out and a new vial brought the numbers back down.
Otherwise I am meticulous about carrying everything with me when I am out and about. I dont leave anything in the car. But with the temps so hot down here, its like being in an oven even when just outside. When I know I am going to be out for a long time I carry an ice pack in my bag with me.
Maybe mild dehydration is the greater problem for the young and active diabetics.
With one of the recent heat waves that we had, David came home vomiting and showing moderate ketones on a test strip even though his BG was fine. The whole episode lasted about a 1/2 day. He was eating and drinking by the evening I put the whole thing down to him getting a little overheated, as their school is not, air conditioned.
Cheryl
I use a cooler pack called “FRIO” when I don’t have a refrigerator to store my insulin (usually during travel). The packs come in various sizes and could easily be used to store pens, vials, testing strips etc. They are quite neat - you just soak them in water to activate crystals. As they dehydrate, they make the pack very cool. Just google “FRIO” for info.
I’m pretty sure my mom gave me a gardening neckerchief out of that same sort of material. Interesting.