DEFY Diabetes

Take Control and Empower Your Health

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DEFY Diabetes

Take Control and Empower Your Health

Diabetes mellitus is a metabolic disease that impacts how a person manages glucose. It’s typically a result of ongoing metabolic disease or unhealthy dietary habits, along with other contributing factors.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, diabetes has been diagnosed in 30 million people or 9% of the US population, and 15.3% of men were estimated to have diabetes as of 2017. There are several risk factors that can lead to a diabetes diagnosis including high blood sugar, smoking, being overweight or obese, and physical inactivity. Having high blood pressure and high cholesterol are also risk factors.

Men, have you been diagnosed with diabetes and experienced one or more of these conditions?

Weight gain or loss of muscle mass

A loss of sex drive or erectile dysfunction (ED)

Fertility issues

Symptoms of depression or mood swings

Fatigue or loss of energy

Changes in memory

Poor spatial orientation (posture, coordination, and movement)

Urological problems such as overactive bladder or urinary tract infections

Don’t Let Diabetes Reduce Your Quality of Life

In men with type-2 diabetes, research shows that low testosterone impacts health-related quality of life. Men with type-2 diabetes are twice as likely to suffer from low testosterone as men without diabetes.

Some of the conditions commonly reported by men with diabetes include erectile dysfunction, overactive bladder, loss of stamina, fertility issues, muscle pain/weakness, increase body fat, neuropathy, and joint pain. These conditions can be eliminated or greatly reduced with proper intervention by an experienced care team.

Among men with low testosterone levels, 70% reported ED and 63% reported low sex drive. Erectile dysfunction itself is a marker of ill health.

Testosterone supports a lean body composition which results in optimal metabolic function and glucose metabolism. Having low levels of testosterone can make it more difficult to manage diabetes and also results in additional symptoms that reduce the quality of life.

How important is testosterone to men with diabetes? A study of men with diabetes suggests that those with low testosterone levels may die sooner without interventional testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) to restore testosterone to a sufficient level.

Know your numbers

A simple blood test is done to determine metabolic health and testosterone levels. Blood testing is the most accurate method of analyzing metabolic and hormone levels. If you have been diagnosed with diabetes or are at risk, certain numbers are important to know and discuss with your doctor. What are your current numbers? What is the target number? What can you do to get there?

1. A1C

2. Fasting glucose

3. Testosterone free and total

Take the first step towards better health and order your initial blood test panel today. The blood panel will include metabolic biomarkers that will help determine your current diabetes status in addition to associated risk factors and key hormones, including testosterone and thyroid.

We only use nationally accredited laboratories with locations in most cities and townships. In-home services are available in some areas for those who are unable to travel to a local service center.

Prevention

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are an estimated 86 million Americans aged 20 years or older with prediabetes. ‘Prediabetes’ describes a consistently high blood sugar that is not yet elevated enough to be diagnosed as diabetes.

Prediabetes is an indicator to implement healthy eating and regular exercise immediately to lower blood sugar. Improvements in diet and body composition may be enough to prevent diabetes in men who are at risk.

There are certain actions you can take to combat high blood sugar:

Eat a balanced diet with fresh fruits and vegetables, lean protein and whole grains
Avoid excess sugar and calories
Quit smoking
Exercise regularly — walking for just 30 minutes a day can lower blood sugar
Maintain a healthy weight. Losing as little as two to three pounds per year helps battle type 2 diabetes in the long run

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Defy Medical Integrative Treatment

Diabetes management and the treatment of associated symptoms often requires a multi-faceted approach that addresses several key areas and can include pharmaceutical intervention.

Since diabetes often coexists with other conditions that share common symptoms and also impacts different aspects of health, there is not a single treatment that solves all issues. It is important to seek the assistance of a care team experienced in the prevention, management, and treatment of diabetes using the latest evidence to personalize care that produces results.

Defy Medical practitioners will analyze important metabolic biomarkers using a national laboratory service to determine diabetes status and risk factors. Blood tests include hormone markers to help determine low levels or imbalance that can be improved with hormone replacement therapy.

Hormones

Testosterone

Luteinizing hormone

Estrogen

Gonadotropins

Insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1)

Thyroid hormones (TSH, T3, T4)

Patients can experience significant improvements and sometimes even a reversal of diabetes with a healthy and low-glycemic diet, an increase in muscle, a reduction of body fat, and maintaining adequate levels of testosterone. The Defy care team will address testosterone and other hormone deficiencies using a variety of hormone options and dosage forms. For example, there are several ways to administer testosterone including topical cream or gel, injection, pellet implant, nasal gel, and sublingual lozenge.

Controlling blood sugar should remain a priority with diet, education, and support as key parts of each patient’s treatment. Improvements in body composition and diet, with application of testosterone therapy when appropriately diagnosed, can provide an effective approach to treating diabetes.

Other hormones like anabolic-androgenic nandrolone decanoate may be used along with testosterone to improve body composition, reduce joint pain, and help improve blood sugar control.

Medication Through Compounding Pharmacies

Our practitioners use compounding pharmacies to create custom medications that combine various FDA-approved ingredients into a single dosage, allowing our team to go beyond the limitations of commercial drugs.

These medications can be used to control blood sugar, sugar cravings, and appetite or customized to treat multiple symptoms in a single dose. Compounding allows our team to follow the latest evidence and access a variety of therapies not commonly available at retail pharmacies.

Convenient Treatment from Anywhere

Defy Medical’s telemedicine service allows you to receive quality diabetes care from the comfort of home or anywhere you have access to a phone or computer with Internet access. Testosterone replacement therapy can also be accessed using telemedicine, eliminating the need for clinic visits and waiting rooms.

Specialty medications are shipped from our FDA-registered pharmacies and delivered to your door, so you don’t have to locate a pharmacy for hard-to-find medications.

Whether using our telemedicine service or visiting the clinic in Tampa, FL, Defy Medical offers more time with the doctor, which allows you and your provider time to cover more than one area of concern. Technology allows our care team to closely monitor patients through routine lab work, phone check-ups, symptom surveys, and prescription monitoring. The same technology connects patients to our full medical team from any location to provide greater continuity of care.