This year the hashtag EverydayReality is a focal point of American Diabetes Month in November. Diabetes touches everyone, even those who aren’t among the 23 million diagnosed Americans.

Diabetes doesn’t discriminate. 1 in 3 Americans is at risk for diabetes. Health care costs for those with diabetes is 2.3 times greater than those who don’t have diabetes.

Cucamonga Valley Medical Group has brought diabetes to the forefront through its six-week Diabetes Education Program, which began October 11 and continues this month.

The program is coordinated by CVMG Nurse Practitioner Sarah Tamayo-Perez. Certified Diabetes Educator Noe Lopez, RN, and Maria Rojas, Hispanic community educator are instructors during the classes offered at no cost to CVMG Spanish-speaking patients.

We at CVMG encourage all our patients to learn about the effects of this disease that impacts so many people.

Know the Early Symptoms of Diabetes

Among the common symptoms of diabetes are:

• Urinating often
• Feeling very thirsty
• Feeling very hungry even though you are eating
• Extreme fatigue
• Blurry vision
• Cuts/bruises that are slow to heal
• Weight loss even though you are eating more (type 1)
• Tingling pain or numbness in the hands/feet (type 2)

Diabetes Myth Busters

The American Diabetes Association works to set the record straight and educate the world about diabetes and its risk factors by sharing common questions and answers. A few of these:

If you’re overweight, will you always develop type 2 diabetes?

Being overweight is a risk factor for developing diabetes, but other risk factors such as how much physical activity you get, family history, ethnicity and age also play a role. Many people with type 2 diabetes are at a normal weight or only moderately overweight.

Is diabetes caused by eating sugar?

A diet high in calories from any source, including sugar, contributes to weight gain and weight gain increases your risk of type 2 diabetes. Type 1 diabetes is caused by genetics and unknown factors that trigger the onset of the disease.

Do sugary drinks cause diabetes?

Research has also shown that drinking sugary drinks is linked to type 2 diabetes. The American Diabetes Association recommends that people avoid drinking sugar-sweetened beverages to help prevent type-2 diabetes.

Sugary drinks also raise blood glucose (also called blood sugar) and can provide several hundred calories in just one serving. Just one 12-ounce can of regular soda has about 150 calories and 40 grams of carbohydrate. This is the same amount of carbohydrate in 10 teaspoons of sugar.

Is diabetes a serious disease?

Yes. Diabetes causes more deaths per year than breast cancer and AIDS combined, and having diabetes nearly doubles your chance of having a heart attack. The good news is that managing your diabetes can reduce your risk for diabetes complications.