I watched. I read. I watched again. I read again.
My Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube feeds were suddenly chock-full of diabetes content—education, awareness, reminders, campaigns… all of it.
Until.
Until I asked a friend what he thought of all the diabetes information flooding social media.
He looked at me blankly.
“What are you talking about?”
I repeated my point.
He repeated his:
“Not on my feed.”
Hmmmmmmmmmmm.
It turns out that because of my heavy presence in the diabetes world, I’m a target for all things diabetes. Everything. Everywhere. All the time. So I dug a little deeper.
Most of you know this already: the moment you search for anything online, your computer becomes a magnet. It pulls in every product, every service, every article, and every ad that looks remotely related to your search. When you live in the diabetes universe—personally or professionally—you’ve essentially opened Pandora’s box. The algorithm will make sure you see tens of thousands of diabetes-related things… whether you want to or not.
But here’s the question:
Do people like us actually need the extra reminders during Diabetes Awareness Month?
We get all this information all year long. We’re already tuned to that station.
I’m not suggesting the messages should stop, far from it.
My point is this:
Let’s focus on reaching the people outside our world. The ones who don’t know. The ones who need it.
Send direct mail to family practices about missed diagnoses.
Send symptom reminders to school nurses, pediatric offices, urgent cares, and primary care providers.
Aim commercials and PSAs at the folks who aren’t searching for diabetes content—because they’re the ones who need the education most.
Every Family Physician (and NP and PA) should check a patient’s blood sugar at every visit. If a full A1C is too much, do a finger prick. No, a finger prick isn’t diagnostic—but it is a flashing red light that something isn’t right if a number comes back at, say, 344. That alone could trigger further testing and save a life.
Next November, let’s all focus on those who “don’t get it.” Why would they? Did you, before diabetes entered your life? I surely didn’t.
Imagine an entire month dedicated to educating the world—not us, the world—on what diabetes is, what the warning signs are, and what first steps someone should take if they suspect it.
Every celebrity.
Every nonprofit.
Every pharma company.
Every business.
One unified message for one month:
Here are the signs. Here’s what to look for. Here’s what to do.
Imagine the stories that could come from that.
Imagine just one person helped instantly because someone recognized the symptoms.
The problem isn’t getting better.
And it isn’t being talked about nearly enough outside our circle.
Think about it.
I’m a diabetes dad.
Please visit my Diabetes Dad FB Page and hit ‘like.’ Tagged diabetes, diabetes dad, diabetes inspiration