Behold the photo that inspired this entire blog post. One of our favorite diabetes artists, The Diabetic Survivor, features this awesome cell phone accessory that allows you to insert your test strip into a phone. We thought it was fake until we did further research. We can literally hear the Akon ringtone playing now, as we admire this gem.
by Mitra Momtazi - Genteel Blog, April 1, 2021
Check the whole article at
It Might Be April Fools... But These Diabetes Supplies Are No Joke
Below part of this cool article:
ANCIENT EGYPT
The ancient Egyptians were the first to mention any symptoms of diabetes, shown in the papyrus above. Specifically, they noticed that ants were attracted to the urine of people thought to have diabetes. They were even able to make a distinction between two different kinds of diabetes, however the information was still far from accurate. In this era, diabetes was understood as a “melting of the flesh and limbs into the urine”. To treat ailments, a concoction of "Water from the Bird Pond, Elderberry, Fibres of the asit plant, Fresh Milk, Beer-Swill, Flower of the Cucumber, and Green Dates" was consumed. Urinary troubles in adults were also corrected with "rectal injections of olive oil, honey, sweet beer, sea salt, and seeds of the wonderfruit".
ANCIENT GREECE
Greek physician Apollonius of Memphis mentioned the term “diabetes,” which was another one of its earliest mentions in human civilization. Early Greek physicians recommended treating diabetes with exercise on horseback. They believed that this activity would reduce the need for excessive urination. Additionally, a “nonirritating” milk-and-carb diet was also recommended. For example, milk with rice, and other starchy, gummy foods “to thicken the blood and supply salts”. A common theme here is that diet and natural resources have been a go-to for centuries to heal the body. Fortunately, we know a lot more about nutrition now. However, at this point, we still are still a few thousand years away from attaining accurate information.
GREAT BRITAIN IN THE 1700S
In the 1700s and 1800s, physicians continued to try different dietary changes to help manage diabetes, and they advised their patients to do things like eat only the fat and meat of animals or, consume large amounts sugar. This was also during the industrialization of bacon, so there may have been an ulterior motive there.
SAN DIEGO IN 1960
Leave it to the Seismic Sixties to make a breakthrough in glucose checks. At this point, researchers Frederick Banting and Charles Best had already learned that the pancreas was the root cause of the disease, after conducting a study in which the removal of a dog's pancreas led to the development of diabetes. The photo here is a prototype of the first pump that delivered glucagon as well as insulin. It was only a prototype to see if the idea of insulin pumping was feasible. Pumps like the one in the picture were not produced and sold but were part of the beginnings to the continuous glucose monitors we know today--A wonderful tool that has saved many lives. Even in 2021 though, CGMs can’t always be 100% accurate. Make sure to always have a comfortable way to do manual glucose checks in the case of sensor errors, warm ups, and other technological blunders that no one is immune to.
LANCERS AND GLUCOMETERS IN 1985
The dynamic duo looked a little like this in the 80’s. In reference to the glucometer on the left, diabetes warrior David Taylor writes on the Smithsonian website, “I was fortunate to have been able to acquire this very unit in early 1985. After living with juvenile diabetes for more than twelve poorly managed years, I was finally able to properly monitor glucose levels and adjust insulin doses". The finger pricker to the right was actually found in our Facebook Community in a post giving appreciation to Genteel for making manual sugar checks so much easier. Poster Nina F. says, “It was torture, the guts you had to build up to press that red button on the top to release the needle, that you then watched fire like a catapult into your finger.....” Yikes.FLIP PHONES IN 2006
Behold the photo that inspired this entire blog post. One of our favorite diabetes artists, The Diabetic Survivor, features this awesome cell phone accessory that allows you to insert your test strip into a phone. We thought it was fake until we did further research. We can literally hear the Akon ringtone playing now, as we admire this gem.