She spoke to

the manager of the deli and learned that the soup actually contained split

peas, rather than lentils. The meter had alerted her to two events that

were affecting her blood sugar levels the fact that the "lentil soup"

didn't contain lentils, and that she should avoid eating split peas.

Chase is one

of the first patients to try out the OneTouch UltraSmart Blood Glucose

Monitoring System. Prior to now, Chase and the millions of other Americans

who have been diagnosed with diabetes, have generally relied on traditional

paper logbooks a sort of diabetes "diary" to record their blood

sugar test results and other diabetes-related information, such as the

type and amount of food consumed, medication taken, activity level, etc.

Unfortunately,

paper logbooks can be a burden to maintain. And more importantly, both

patients and even their doctors may find it difficult to spot patterns

or identify problem areas just by looking at individual entries. It has

become an urgent matter for healthcare professionals to find better ways

to manage diabetes.

About 17 million

Americans have this disease, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control

and Prevention has referred to it as an "emerging epidemic."

Furthermore, more than 30 percent of people over the age of 60 have either

diabetes or impaired fasting glucose (meaning they have higher than normal

blood sugar levels, but not high enough to be classified as having diabetes).

Managing diabetes

means keeping blood sugar levels in the near-normal range as much as possible.

The more control the patient has over blood sugar levels, the less likely

it is for him or her to develop long-term complications of diabetes, such

as blindness, kidney failure and limb amputation.

"Blood

glucose levels are constantly changing in response to multiple factors,

such as time of day, food, exercise, medication and stress," said

Chase's doctor, Gillian Katz, M.D., clinical assistant professor of medicine

(endocrinology) at New York University School of Medicine. "The key

is to understand the impact of these factors on an individual's blood

glucose level and make adjustments accordingly. This will help keep blood

sugar levels well controlled, and keep the patient healthy."

The new system

used by Chase, which is in pharmacies now, can help patients transform

blood glucose measurement into more complete diabetes management. The

palm-sized device combines a blood glucose meter with an electronic logbook.

It tests blood

sugar in five seconds, lets patients enter key information with the touch

of a couple of buttons, and then automatically organizes this information

into simple charts and graphs right on the screen. These make it easy

for the patient and doctor to see and understand how individual blood

sugar test results form patterns. Recognition of these patterns, combined

with appropriate behavioral changes that address them, let patients focus

in on problem areas and correct them.

"The other

benefit of the meter is that my doctor is always emphasizing the importance

of 'tight control' which means that my blood sugar levels should remain

within a safe range at all times," said Chase. "Previously,

I found this very difficult to achieve. But with the OneTouch UltraSmart,

I feel that this goal is now within my reach."

"A tool

like this is a major step forward in empowering people with diabetes to

understand how their actions directly affect their blood glucose levels,"

said Dr. Katz. "It can help pinpoint problem areas in a person's

diabetes management program so he or she can focus on making positive

changes to stay healthy."

Chase sums

it up by saying, "The test result numbers don't just exist in a vacuum.

This meter allows me to record what is going on and to match the events

in my life to my blood sugar results and then to spot patterns. My doctor

will look at these patterns and tell me to work on behavioral changes

since my sugar levels go up when I'm stressed.

"I have

a pretty high-stress job," Chase admitted. "It's not so easy

to change my lifestyle. But it's better to try to address the stress now

than to experience the complications of uncontrolled blood sugar levels

down the road."

The American

Diabetes Association publishes an excellent guide for older people with

diabetes. Called "101 Tips for Aging Well with Diabetes," it

is available for $14.95 from https://store.diabetes.org or by calling (800)

232-6733.

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