16th Annual Mid-Ohio JDRF Promise Ball to Raise Money for Type 1 Diabetes Research

Former Congressman, Zachary T. Space, 
is this year's honoree at the Promise Ball.

JDRF is a global organization which funds innovative research on type 1 diabetes. I was recently contacted by the Mid-Ohio Chapter of JDRF to see if I would be interested in interviewing the JDRF 2014 Promise Ball honoree and his son, Zachary and Nicholas Space. I'm glad to have this opportunity to learn more about JDRF.

Let's backtrack a little bit though. What is diabetes? I'm sure for most of us, if you don't have the disease yourself or have a close family member or friend with it, you don't give it much thought. A few terms might be familiar, like blood glucose and insulin. Let's fix that, together. 

Diabetes, or, diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disease which results in the patient having high blood sugar. Diabetes is caused by the body not producing enough insulin or by the body not using insulin correctly. 


There are three types of diabetes: 

• Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) is caused by the pancreas not producing enough insulin. Patients with T1D are insulin dependent and have to monitor their diet, exercise and stress levels to manage their blood sugar.
• Type 2 Diabetes (T2D) results from the body becoming resistant to its own insulin. T2D can be managed and even reversed with proper diet and exercise. 
• Gestational Diabetes occurs in pregnant women when they develop a high blood glucose level. 

Exercises for the Family – Yoga

To help educate and inform the public on important health issues, the Columbus branch of the American Heart Association is collaborating with local bloggers to share their stories about heart heath and their own nutrition and fitness tips. March was nutrition and fitness month and I will be sharing my favorite tips for exercising with your family.

Exercises for the Family – Hiking

Scenes from Hayden Falls (left and top right) and Battelle Darby Creek (bottom right)

To help educate and inform the public on important health issues, the Columbus branch of the American Heart Association is collaborating with local bloggers to share their stories about heart heath and their own nutrition and fitness tips. March was nutrition and fitness month and I will be sharing my favorite tips for exercising with your family.

Open Sky Day Spa - Grandview Heights

Open Sky Day Spa in Grandview Heights is a lovely little spa that offers massages, facials, waxing and tinting. I was recently asked to review Open Sky's services for my blog. I was given the option of choosing a massage or facial. I always enjoy the mini facials I receive as part of my haircut at the Aveda Institute, so I chose the Custom Signature Facial.