Any life insurance agent that has been
around for very long will attest to the statements made in that article.
Diabetics now make up a large percentage of our client base and the number of
people diagnosed as diabetic or pre or borderline diabetic on life insurance
exams has sky rocketed. While most diabetics are insurable at fair rates, it is
alarming to see how many diabetics have truly stayed somewhat uneducated about
their condition and do not fully comprehend or care about the fact that
diabetes can have a compounding effect on other health issues and ultimately be
at least the root cause of a health decline that leads to an early death. Those
diabetics who do take the situation seriously, educating themselves, monitoring
their diabetes and taking control of other risk factors such as hypertension
and obesity, can ultimately lead a long, healthy life. Not surprising that this
group is also rewarded with life insurance rates that reflect their concern
with their own longevity. It should be no secret that life insurance companies
reward those who have an interest in their own mortality.
Those that do not take care of
themselves are usually still insurable, but will pay a premium that reflects
the end of the risk pool they have chosen to swim in. Not understanding the
disease, not monitoring your glucose on a regular basis, not changing your
lifestyle and not being compliant with your physician's suggestions will all
contribute to higher rates that you really have to pay if your concern factor
was a bit higher. Good quiz for a diabetic: Do you know what your hbA1C, or A1C
level is? Do you even know what it is referring to? The A1C, a test done by
your physician every time you have a checkup is a measure of how well you are
controlling your diabetes. Blood glucose binds to the hemoglobin through a
process called glycosylation. The higher the blood sugar the more the glucose
binds to the hemoglobin. A blood test can measure the amount of glycosylation
that has occurred revealing the average blood glucose levels for the previous
three to four months before the test.
Do you understand why this is important
to you? With a healthy A1C level of say, 6.5 or less, you know that your
glucose is staying in check over long periods. Do not fool yourself into
believing that the glucose reading you took before breakfast this morning is
indicative of where your glucose is all the time. For instance, let us say you
take your glucose at an optimal time, before breakfast, and the reading is 110.
Then let us assume that your A1C is 7.5. That would indicate that your average
glucose over the last 3 months is around 165. So, if the average is 165 and the
low end is 110, that means that there are many times when your glucose is well
over 200, not a healthy level. What are the complications of type 2 diabetes?
What really worries life insurance underwriters? This list came from the
American Diabetes Association website. www.diabetes.org:
Heart Disease and Stroke
People with diabetes have extra reason
to be mindful of heart and blood vessel disease. Diabetes carries an increased
risk for heart attack, stroke, and complications related to poor circulation.
Kidney Disease
Diabetes can damage the kidneys, which
not only can cause them to fail, but can also make them lose their ability to
filter out waste products.
Eye Complications
Diabetes can cause eye problems and may
lead to blindness. People with diabetes do have a higher risk of blindness than
people without diabetes. Early detection and treatment of eye problems can save
your sight.
Diabetic Neuropathy and Nerve Damage
One of the most common complications of
diabetes is diabetic neuropathy. Neuropathy means damage to the nerves that run
throughout the body, connecting the spinal cord to muscles, skin, blood vessels,
and other organs.
Foot Complications
People with diabetes can develop many
different foot problems. Foot problems most often happen when there is nerve
damage in the feet or when blood flow is poor. Learn how to protect your feet
by following some basic guidelines.
Skin Complications
As many as one-third of people with
diabetes will have a skin disorder caused or affected by diabetes at some time
in their lives. In fact, such problems are sometimes the first sign that a
person has diabetes. Luckily, most skin conditions can be prevented or easily
treated if caught early.
Gastroparesis and Diabetes
Gastroparesis is a disorder that
affects people with both type 1 and type 2 diabetes.
Depression
Feeling down once in a while is normal.
But some people feel a sadness that just won't go away. Life seems hopeless.
Feeling this way most of the day for two weeks or more is a sign of serious
depression.
Ultimately there is good news for type
2 diabetics working to acquire life insurance. With improvements in treatment
and all of the available diabetic education, you can control your condition and
to a great extent control your ability to get affordable life insurance. Type 1
diabetes Type 1 diabetes, often called juvenile diabetes, is different from
type 2 diabetes but often has many of the same complications. While type 2
diabetes is occurs when a person has too little natural insulin or his or her
body is not able to use the insulin `effectively, type 1 diabetes is the
absence of insulin altogether. From www.ehealthmd.com we get this take on the
cause of type 1 diabetes. "Diabetes is an autoimmune disease. That means
the body's defense system attacks some of the body's own cells. In type 1
diabetes, the cells in the pancreas that make insulin are destroyed, and
therefore they are no longer capable of making insulin.
We don't know exactly why this happens,
but we do know that some people are born with a tendency to develop diabetes.
Then something "triggers" the onset of the disease. It may be a virus
that triggers the onset, or it may be something in the environment. There is
nothing a person can do to prevent this from happening."
That having been said, a person with
type 1 diabetes is left with two options. They can control their diabetes by
persistently monitoring their glucose levels and being very committed and
dogmatic about administering insulin as prescribed. There is an
often-misunderstood relationship between diet and diabetes. The Mayo Clinic's
website at www.mayoclinic.com
suggests the following: "Contrary to popular perception, there is no
diabetes diet. Furthermore, having diabetes doesn't mean you have to eat only
bland, boring foods. Instead, it means you'll eat more fruits, vegetables and
whole grains - foods that are high in nutrition and low in fat and calories -
and fewer animal products and sweets. Actually, it's the same eating plan
everyone should follow." So, a healthy diet and persistent monitoring and
treatment are the key.
The other option I suggested would be
the option of not taking your diabetes seriously. A type 1 diabetic who only
occasionally checks their glucose, is not horribly committed to a healthy
lifestyle, and may not take insulin as prescribed, but more when they think
they need it, is a person who is looking for a long-term health problem. The
long-term affects of mismanaged type 1 diabetes are at best damaging and at
worst deadly. It should be no wonder that life insurance underwriters pay
special attention to the type of compliance you keep with your doctor and
dietician and the type of control you have achieved and maintained with your
glucose levels.Again, you will not impress a life insurance underwriter, or for
that matter, a life insurance agent who is knowledgeable about diabetes by
telling them your most recent glucose reading was 98. That may be control, but
it might also be a well-timed glucose check. The real story comes from your
regular lab work and the test that reveals all secrets, the hbA1C. This test
will take both your 98 and 230 into account; the reading you did not want to
discuss or possibly did not even take because you knew it was bad timing for a
good reading.
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