What's small, green and cute? Nah, not Kermit the Frog. It's the Renew Lancing System. I was just checking out Amy T's review of this and other cool/interesting new diabetes-related gadgetry on her site, Diabetes Mine.

The Renew Advanced Lancing System: it's sleek, small, and in cool colors - retro lime green and silver. But the name! "Renew Advanced Lancing System" - jeepers, couldn't they have thought of something a little catchier?? Anyway, it's a handy little self-contained, disposable lancing unit that contains twenty needles. Don't bother checking out the website, 'cause there's no info on there yet. Hmm...

Amy gives the thumbs-down to another newie: the DUO-CARE, a combined blood glucose and blood pressure monitor. The idea is okay, but the design: ugh. It takes the form of a huge and clunky wrist bracelet. Remember how guys in the 80s wore those enormous, square digital watches. It looks like that - times twenty! Interesting idea, but a loser, design-wise. (Mind you, if people will use the Exubera mega-inhaler, who's to say they won't buy this, too?)

We applaud Amy's view that diabetes gadgets need to lose the hospital-bed-pan-look. Keep searching for the coolest new stuff, Amy! And here's hoping your terrific letter makes it into the hands of Steve Jobs.

Hear ye! Hear ye! I have an announcement to make. About 3 months ago, a committee formed to explore the possibility of creating a new conference series for adults with type 1 diabetes. Most conferences are currently geared towards all types of diabetes, but a group of us felt there should be more for the unique challenges that are posed to adults living with type 1.

With that in mind, we are conducting an interest study for the conference. Who would you like to see at the conference? Tell us what is missing from Type 1 diabetes (besides the obvious **cure**). This will help us with programming, as well as securing sponsorships for the event. Besides giving you all you want from the latest and greatest in type 1 diabetes - you have a chance to leave your mark on this revolutionary event. At the end of the survey, there is a question about creating a name for the conference. The committee will choose the winning name. The winner will receive an autographed copy of Know Your Numbers, by Amy Tenderich and Dr. Richard Jackson. The second and third places prizes are a Six Until Me mug and a Diabetes Mine mug, donated by Kerri Morrone and Amy Tenderich.

The survey closes on Friday, September 7, 2007 so don't miss your opportunity to voice your opinion. Take the survey today!!

For those of you who do not know her yet - consider today your lucky day!! She is Amy Tenderich and her site, Diabetes Mine, is a force to be reckoned with in the diabetes online community. What do I mean? When Amy speaks - anybody who's anybody in the diabetes online community listens.

A few months ago she posted an open letter to Steve Jobs, which was wildly discussed in the blogosphere and media. She invited gadget designers to rise to the challenge of creating sleeker, cooler, consumer-oriented medical devices for people with diabetes. Not only did she get the diabetes blogosphere stirring - but the minds of entrepreneurs storming, as well.

Amy motivated a San Francisco-based company to react in a universal remote control sort of way. Adaptive Path has designed The Charmr, a prototype of a continuous glucose monitor combined with an insulin pump, universally controlled by a device that looks to be no bigger than a USB stick! I strongly encourage everybody to checkout Amy's blog with all the details (including reader feedback) and the YouTube video on the Charmr. Bravo Amy!!

Last week Amy Tenderich, creator of Diabetes Mine and co-author of Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes, sent out an email asking us to speak out on behalf of Mr. Universe. I remembered the gist of the story when it first happened, back in April. What I didn't realize was the ensuing atrocities for Mr. Burns after the event.

Back in April, Doug Burns was maced by police during a hypoglycemic event at a movie theater. During the episode, the police assumed he was intoxicated, despite a bystander's insistence that it might be a diabetes issue. He was handcuffed, thrown into a car, and driven to a nearby ER without proper treatment for his hypoglycemia. Officers arrested him for assault and resisting arrest. Prosecutors initially insisted Burns needed to provide more medical evidence that he was a Type I diabetic suffering from insulin shock at the time. For some unknown reason -- a blood sugar of 40 isn't proof enough? The records from the event show that Doug never struck anyone, and in fact, he was the only party injured in the incident. However, the case was raised to assault and resisting arrest when one of the policemen suddenly reported an injury -- week-and-half later.

Turns out the county prosecutors have dropped misdemeanor charges against Mr. Universe. Ladies and gentleman, this is proof of how misinformed the general public is of the hurdles diabetics must overcome to continue life, uninterrupted. I'm proud to say that when issues are raised, awareness prevails. Thanks to everybody who called into the DAs office last week and thanks to Amy for calling out for the help.

If you've been around the diabetes online community you've certainly heard of Amy Tenderich. Her award-winning site is touted as one of the most influential diabetes sites out there. If you're looking for a gold mine of straight talk and encouragement -- Diabetes Mine is your destination. And now is your chance to speak to the celebrity herself! Amy will be chatting live on Tuesday, May 22, 9pm EST on Diabetes Talkfest.

Her charm comes through, loud and clear, in her cynically optimistic view of the trials of living with diabetes. Her journalistic flair derives from the heart and covers topics like breaking news and inside looks at diabetes research, as well as daily life with diabetes and uncovering the diabetics' deepest hopes and fears. Her all inclusive panache, along with her comedic nuances, make every moment of reading worth it.

Diabetes Mine has been featured in the Wall St. Journal, the UK Guardian, TechCrunch, NPR's Future Tense, and a number of other publications. The most recent feather in Amy's cap was added when she collaborated with Dr. Richard Jackson, a leading physician from Joslin Diabetes Center, to co-author the book Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes. True to form, the book is hailed as the first-ever straightforward guidebook providing a clear strategy for living well with diabetes and avoiding the long-term health damage it can cause. I look forward to the opportunity of chatting with Amy. Hope you all can join us!

In the next 3 to 5 years, we will have a new generation of control upon us providing continuous glucose monitoring. Some of these marvelous technologies will not require a drop of blood, while others will embody the tried-and-true stick-to-itiveness we all know and loathe.

Please join me as we browse the isles of things to come (and things now available) for continuous glucose monitoring.

The DexCom STS Continuous Glucose Monitoring System is a glucose sensor that reports glucose values every 5 minutes for up to 72 hours. The sensor is inserted in the abdomen. After a 2 hour start-up period, the STS System is calibrated with 2 fingerstick measurements taken by a traditional glucose meter. Checkout Amy Tenderich's review on Diabetes Mine of the DexCom Continuous Glucose Monitoring Sytem.

MiniMed Medtronic has 3 different versions: the Gold, the Guardian RT, and the Paradigm Real-Time Continuous Monitor.

Menarini GlucoDay S is a device worn by the patient for the continuous monitoring of glucose in the subcutaneous interstitial fluid. Monitoring is performed via insertion in the abdominal region of a microfibre for dialysis having the diameter of a human hair. Inside the microfibre a solution transports the patient's glucose to a biosensor within the instrument.

M-Biotech Glucose Biosensor is a minimally invasive implantation for painless and convenient monitoring. The key feature of our efficient Glucose Biosensor is the combination of a glucose-sensitive hydrogel and a miniature pressure sensor. Glucose-responsive hydrogels are biocompatible materials that either swell or contract when the glucose concentrations change in the body fluid surrounding the hydrogel.

The PreciSense System includes a microcapsule placement unit and a light detecting non-invasive reader unit. The microcapsule placement unit poses the right dose of glucose-responding microcapsules in the upper layer of the skin, painlessly. The glucose assay components in the microcapsules generate a fluorescence signal that corresponds to the glucose level. The non-invasive reader unit monitors this glucose binding event through FRET, Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer, which is directly related to the concentration of glucose.

Sensors for Medicine and Science glucose sensor is implanted under the skin in a short outpatient procedure. The sensor automatically measures interstitial glucose every few minutes, without any user intervention. The sensor implant will communicate wirelessly with a small external reader.

Synthetic Blood Implanted Glucose Biosensor claims to offer significantly more accurate glucose readings in a range of 30-500 mg/dl. The implanted Glucose Biosensor continuously monitors blood glucose without the need for finger sticks. The most accurate glucose monitor available, the implanted biosensor can be programmed to monitor blood glucose according to a predetermined schedule, thus eliminating problems of patient compliance. The sensor alarms for dangerous, life threatening conditions such as hypoglycemia.

GlucoLight Corporation is developing a low-cost non-invasive blood glucose monitor for home use by diabetic patents. GlucoLight's unique optical approach, microScatterTM (microscatter) technology, is based on patented technologies in the area of Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) and Low Coherence Interferometry (LCI). There is a working prototype with published clinical data on healthy volunteers.

The GlucoWatch G2 Biographer was approved to detect glucose level trends and track patterns in people with diabetes. It must be used along with conventional blood glucose monitoring of blood samples. The device, which looks like a wristwatch, pulls body fluid from the skin using small electric currents. It can provide six measurements per hour for 13 hours. (See David Mendosa's review).

Thanks to dLife, a whole page of insightful advice is available to help decrypt the otherwise ambiguous code of making it work when it comes to diabetes and relationships.

Combining diabetes with a romantic partnership can be a delicate balance. Living with it is one thing, but what about if you are the partner of a person with diabetes? It seems to take superhuman strength to survive the disease alone. Thanks to the good folks at dLife-- you can read more about diabetes and making it a healthy part of your relationship.

Questions that plague couples faced with diabetes are intuitively answered by relationship experts. For example:

How can a couple overcome the communication quagmire when one of you has it and both of you live with it?

A priceless perspective is offered by Amy Tenderich (a type 1 diabetic journalist) as she ponders what life may be like for our partners and loved ones.

Or learn about the secrets of living and loving with diabetes.

Last but not least, read an excerpt from the dLife bookshelf about diabetes and intimacy.

With so much to offer, and so much to give - hopefully you will gain something from dLife on Diabetes and Relationships. In turn, perhaps you will have more to share with your loved ones to mitigate the affects diabetes imposes on loved ones.

Think that big old Exubera inhaler (pictured) is sorta comical? You're definitely not alone. I was surfing around trying to get a clearer sense of how Pfizer's much-hyped inhalable insulin device is doing. Are users liking it? Is it really easy to use? Etcetera. But I got sidetracked into reading about that inhaler. It's big, it's plastic, it's bulky. The insulin bong. Come on, admit it. You were thinking the same thing! Here are some of the choicest comments I came across:

Spotted on one message board: "As a pharmacist, my biggest problem with Exubera is that the delivery system looks not entirely dissimilar to a bong. I just don't see the conversation starter 'excuse me, I need to take a hit off of my insulin bong' to be a great opener."

On another board, one wag lists off what he/she considers Exubera's shortcomings. In addition to the fact that, yes, it looks like a bong, this reader also observes that diabetics "have to carry around enough bulky s**t as it is." Plus there's the fact that "Type II's can't afford it...unless they cut back on their food budget...but then they will lose weight...and they wouldn't need insulin."

On Diabetes Mine: the device "really is as bad as it looks in pictures. Worse, because the bulky 'white' plastic portions are not white at all, but that hospital-grade beige that reminds you of walkers and bedpans. An aesthetic nightmare, in the age of cool gadgetry...The funny thing was that the happy Exubera user in Pfizer's video must live in a city as tolerant or as jaded as San Francisco or New York, because not one patron even glanced over as he cocked and sucked on his medicinal bong."

Medical humor site QFever pokes fun at the device's arguably limited appeal with a satirical article describing how Exubera will be a practical alternative for "several diabetics." They missed a golden opportunity here by not zooming in on the inhaler for comedic mileage. What were they thinking?!

The final word goes to Drug Nazi (who I believe has now changed his moniker to Drug Monkey), who finds the Exubera inhaler reminds him of, er, something else entirely: "Oh Yeah...gimmie some of that sweet insulin lovin' baby..." (Oh, PS, if you visit this site, you have to read "Why does my prescription take so damn long to fill?) Happy inhaling.

Many of us fear what we do not know, which could be why the diagnosis of diabetes is so harrowing. Fear no more. Amy Tenderich has teamed up with Dr. Richard Jackson, MD of the Joslin Diabetes Center to shed some light on the heaps of material we must digest to control our diabetes. Amy and Dr. Jackson have simply explained it all in Know Your Numbers, Outlive Your Diabetes: 5 Essential Health Factors You Can Master to Enjoy a Long and Healthy Life (Marlowe Diabetes Library).

The book is a priceless addition to any diabetic library. It begins by explaining the five tests that are the cornerstones for monitoring your overall health with diabetes. These tests are: A1c, blood pressure, lipids, microalbumin, and an annual eye exam. You may think you know it all because you've been there, done that. But do you really know - what it tests, why it's done, and what your numbers should look like? After you learn what those tests mean to you and your health - Amy and Dr. Jackson help you develop a plan of action. They build a road, paved with easy to understand (and explained remarkably well) information about nutrition, medicine, organic treatments, support, and specialized shopping sites for diabetes.

I was impressed beyond my expectations. Knowing the award winning caliber of work Amy produces, and the integrity of Dr. Jackson's work with Joslin Diabetes Center and Harvard Medical - I was looking for a good guidebook on diabetes care. No ma'am. This book is AWESOME! I knew it would be good, Amy. You've outdone yourself, once again. I hope this book motivates everyone who reads it to know their numbers and outlive their diabetes. And when it does - remember us little people, ok? Thanks a million, Amy!

I am proud to announce one of our very own contributors, Amy Tenderich, has been honored for her hard work and dedication to her site, Diabetes Mine. Amy received the 2006 LillyforLife^TM Achievement Award honoring the inspiring achievements of people who make lasting contributions to the diabetes community. There are several categories. Amy won the journalism award, which is extraordinarily cool because this is the first known instance in which a blogger was honored in this manner.

Amy started Diabetes Mine as an Internet gold mine of straight talk and encouragement for people living with diabetes. She was diagnosed with Type 1 in May 2003. She is self-professed as inquisitive and perhaps-just-a-tad overly analytical. And trust me when I tell you, she pulls it off well! One visit to her site will convince you she is a natural wordsmith.

Upon learning of her win, Amy commented, "It's magnificent to know that all the time and energy I've poured into the site is being recognized by the community it's meant to serve." On a personal note, I am inspired by her enthusiastic drive and the way she choreographs her words so eloquently. If you haven't seen Diabetes Mine yet, you'll see what I mean. Take a break from the straight-laced, white bread, diabetic experience most sites offer. Mark my words, you'll get hooked. Diabetes Mine will become your favorite habit. Congratulations Amy!