"Helpful Friends of Diabetics

Q. I gave my (diabetic) girlfriend a Medic Alert bracelet because I am concerned about her should she get in an accident or pass out or something.

She says I am over-reacting because I have never been around a diabetic before. Am I?

I am very concerned every time I see her eat anything with carbs in it and she says I'm getting to be a pain. Thanks. I really like her.

A. There's a fine line between being concerned and being the diabetes police.

I don't consider giving her the Medic Alert bracelet over-reacting (I recommend all people with diabetes wear them), but perhaps that in addition to your other actions is becoming too much. The best thing for you to do is learn as much as you can about diabetes.

Many people think they're helping by giving reminders about food and behaviors, when in fact, their information is not accurate and they're not helping at all. For reliable information about diabetes, contact the Diabetes Association of Greater Cleveland at 216-591-0800.

Q. My friend is diabetic and I want to get her some sugar free candy for her birthday. She says they give her diarrhea.

Is this just "in her head" Are there certain brands that don't have that offending ingredient?

A. It's definitely not in her head. Many of the commercial products claiming to be "sugar free" contain ingredients called sugar alcohols that cause a great deal of GI distress.

I usually recommend avoiding products that contain sugar alcohols for that reason and because they do have a slight effect on blood sugar, as well as being more expensive.

Products labeled sugar free that won't produce the unpleasant GI effects are sweetened with Splenda®, NutraSweet®, and Equal®.

In reality, however, people with diabetes can have a small amount of a regular, sugar-sweetened candy or baked product. It will taste better, cost less and not cause any unpleasant side effects!