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Can Type 1 Diabetics Join The Army

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Workplace Discrimination For People Living With Diabetes

Trying the Canadian Special Forces (JTF2) Physical Fitness Test as a Type 1 Diabetic

Discrimination can come in many forms. It is possible that an employer may refuse to hire you after an employment medical, limit your job responsibilities or promotions, or fire you. Sometimes an employer might simply not bother to find out what diabetes really involves and take the easy option of employing someone they dont see as a risk.

Here are some examples of discrimination in the workplace:

  • You inquire about applying to be an officer with the city police department and are told they do not hire people with diabetes.
  • After experiencing a hypoglycemic reaction at your workplace, you are terminated from your job.
  • Despite requesting a regularly scheduled morning coffee break to test your blood glucose and eat a snack, your employer makes you work through until lunchtime.
  • After the employment medical, your job offer is rescinded because you have type 1 diabetes.

Servicemembers With Uncontrolled Diabetes Allowed To Remain In Military

by Brenda Mooney | Jun 16, 2020

Some Personnel Deployed with HbA1c of 9% or Higher

While, in general, the U.S. military will not accept recruits diagnosed with diabetes, that is especially the case with patients who use insulin, which is seen as an automatic disqualification. The situation is different, however, in military personnel already serving. While most of those retained after diagnosis have well-controlled blood sugar, about a third have hemoglobin A1c measures greater than 7%. Thats why the ability to closely monitor those servicemembers with tools such as continuous glucose monitoring is increasingly important.

Mil Med, Volume 185, Issue 3-4, March-April 2020, Pages 486492, https://doi.org/10.1093/milmed/usz311

FORT SAM HOUSTON, TX In most cases, the U.S. military will not accept recruits with pre-diabetes, Type 1, Type 1.5 or Type 2 diabetes. That is especially the case with patients who use insulin, which is seen as an automatic disqualification.

The situation is different, however, in those already serving. Military personnel who have well-controlled diabetes and a hemoglobin A1c below 7% often are allowed to continue, although their roles might be changed to avoid deployment.

A study in Military Medicine pointed out that U.S. military servicemembers have diabetes mellitus at a rate of 2-3%. And, despite having a chronic medical condition, they have deployed to environments with limited medical support, according to the report.

Duty Restrictions

In Case Of Discrimination

The American Diabetes Association helped in crafting the National Consensus Guidelines for the Medical Evaluation of Law Enforcement Officers for those with diabetes and who choose to work in law enforcement.

It recognizes that refusing to let someone with diabetes work in law enforcement is discriminatory, and it provides a means to identify those persons with diabetes so they can work safely in law enforcement.

The guidelines provide for a medical evaluation, commentary and physician evaluation of the candidate. If a candidate for a position with law enforcement has diabetes, or a person already working in law enforcement with diabetes feel that they have been the victim of discrimination, they may speak with a legal advocate at ADA by calling 1-800-DIABETES. You can read the medical evaluation recommendations for Law Enforcement Officers with diabetes by clicking here: .

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Military Recruiting And Diabetes

If youre not in the military, it can be very difficult to enlist if you have pre-diabetes, Type 1, Type 1.5 or Type 2 diabetes. Depending on the severity of your disease and your A1C, you may be able to enlist in certain positions. However, you can also consider going on a plant-based diet for many months or even a few years before enlisting.

A plaint-based diet has been shown to reverse diabetes and even has allowed some to live without insulin or any other treatment for the disease. Following a strict plant-based diet could be the answer and may allow you to get the all-clear from a doctor before enlisting in the military.

The hard part will be sticking to this type of a diet once youre in the military. While some bases and military outlets have become far healthier, its still difficult to get all the best foods during basic training and during combat. However, if you follow a plant-based diet as much as possible, you may be able to join the military and keep your diabetes from coming back.

Make sure to consult a doctor before starting any new diet. If you want to join the military, but you have pre-diabetes or diabetes, consider making some major diet changes first. This could be your ticket to joining without diabetes and to a healthier you.

Diabetes In The Military

Can A Diabetic Join The Army Reserves

There are no secrets to success. It is the result of preparation, hard work, learning from failure.General Dwight D. Eisenhower

Serving in the US military requires a certain level of physical fitness and freedom from any disability that may require excessive time lost from duty for necessary treatment. When civilians apply to join the military, therefore, they are required to pass a medical exam and to disclose information about their medical history. While not all medical conditions disqualify a person from joining the military, many do, and any type of diabetes generally does.

Developing diabetes while already serving in the military, however, is not automatic grounds for separation from the military. Several hundred service members are diagnosed with diabetes each year. Between 1997 and 2007, fewer than 6% of diabetes diagnoses were Type 1 diabetes, 80% were Type 2 diabetes, and the remaining 14% were not consistently reported as either Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes. Because active service members have mandatory medical examinations and free access to health care, it is thought that there are few undiagnosed cases of diabetes among military personnel. Service members who develop diabetes and cannot maintain an HbA1c level below 7% without medication are referred to a medical evaluation board, which assesses their medical fitness and makes recommendations about follow-up care.

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Determination Of Military Readiness

The medical board is established by each branch of the U.S. Military in order to ensure each service member that joins the military is prepared and ready for any type of situation.

Soldiers are deployed into all types of dangerous situations and must demonstrate basic physical and mental readiness.

Unfortunately, diabetes can cause an unnecessary distraction in times of combat.

It can damage the cohesiveness of a squad, and also put other soldiers at risk if they are attending to your medical needs during combat.

Sadly, diabetes adversely affects the career of a soldier as certain opportunities for promotion and development are restricted or blocked because of the medical condition.

It may prevent you from being able to go on certain assignments which ultimately fosters a bad psyche.

The Army, like other branches of the military, likes to remind servicemembers that the world in which they exist is far different from the real world.

Anything that can get away from the single-minded objective of completing a mission is a serious risk.

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Once You Are In How Hard Is It To Manage

As an officer in law enforcement, you will need to show that you are being compliant with the agreement mentioned previously. There will be periodic medical work fitness evaluations. While on duty, you should be given time to get your blood sugar checks done as warranted, give yourself medications and perform other aspects of diabetes self-care. This is also dependent on where you want to go work. Some departments allow a person with diabetes to work in law enforcement. Other departments disqualify you for it.

Even just 10 years ago, police departments would not hire someone with diabetes of any kind. Things have come a long way since then. Employers are not allowed to discriminate anybody simply because of having diabetes. There are available jobs in law enforcement for diabetics. If this is your dream, persist and do not give up.

As a general rule, if one can perform the functions of the job safely, he or she can then work in law enforcement as a diabetic. Diabetes is a medical condition that is protected by the Americans with Disabilities Act . You should have fair and balanced consideration for a position regardless of your disability.

If one can show that they can manage their diabetes while on the job and do it safely, they can be considered for a job in law enforcement. The agency is not going to have them medically evaluated without an offer for employment therefore if you are turned down due to a medical evaluation, you will know the reason for it.

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Characteristic Of Type 2 Diabetes

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Are Type 1 Diabetics Allowed To Join The Army

Serving in the Military With Type 1 Diabetes – Meet Mark Thompson

Are Type 1 Diabetics allowed to join the army? I really wanna join the military but i doubt if they wold accept me since i am an insulin dependent. I was rejected to work in a cruise ship because of that, i’m afraid the military would reject me too : You can’t be a police officer or a firefighter, or a paramedic either, It is obvious why, If you were separated from your unit for even a few days, you would likely die. Any job where you would have to drive, they just don’t want the added risks. I was a paramedic when I was diagnosed. I was offered a desk job. I moved into laboratory science instead. Now Tim I must disagree with you in the aspect of the firefighter, paramedic part. I have been a paramedic for the last 14 years and am still riding the gut bus 3 days a week. Maybe in some areas they will not accept you for the job but it seems that it would be against the law. Just saying!!! Yes they will denie you into the military!! It sucks but they are way better jobs out there. Trust me, I spent 6 years in the military, I loved what I did but i found that civi life has more to offer. No theres not a lot of glory in EMS but its a great job and you can go so far with it. And this is a job they can never do without. Dont give up hope on jobs or following your dreams. I’m sorry, you won’t be allowed to enlist and it is not just T1, any form ofContinue reading > >

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Why Should Diabetes Be A Problem In The Military

Looking at the reality of the situation will help to show why diabetes presents a problem for military members. Imagine you have been sent overseas to somewhere in the Middle East. Its hot, you only get MREs for meals and you may have to go long periods without eating.

MREs consist mainly of carbohydrates and the heat makes it very difficult to keep your insulin from being exposed to extremely high temperatures. With your unit constantly moving, you getting very little sleep and the high stress situations, this type of work could become very dangerous to your health.

If youre in this type of situation and you live with Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, you will likely be on insulin. Its possible you could leave your insulin behind if your unit moves out fast and it wont take must to see your blood sugar reach dangerous levels very fast.

In the middle of combat, you could have an issue related directly to your diabetes and it could cause your unit to either leave you behind or scramble for supplies. If they have to stop and take care of you, it could put the entire unit at risk.

How Insulin Factors Into The Decision

Often, those with diabetes are on insulin, which is the biggest issue for the military. When it comes to military recruiting and diabetes, if youre on insulin, it will disqualify you almost immediately. If youre not on insulin, its still tricky, but you have a chance.

While it may seem rather cut and dry with diabetes, its not. If youre a Type 1 or Type 2 diabetic and you take insulin, you may be allowed to serve in the military, especially if youre already in the military. If your diabetes is well controlled and you have an A1C below 7, you may be okay.

If youre already in, you will have to jump through some hoops and submit some waivers, but with the right medical testing, you may be able to serve in a non-combat related position. However, if your A1C reaches a level above 7, you could be discharged.

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Enlistment After Diagnoses Of Diabetes

As per the 2017 regulations of the US military, you may not be able to join the military if you have diabetes. The official army regulations standards for Medical fitness explore that individuals with diabetes history do not meet the standards for enlistment in the military. Especially Army has straightforward rules for not qualifying people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes.

Soldiers diagnosed with diabetes after enlistment have higher chances of staying in the military if they can perform all duties well. They also need to undergo Medical Board Evaluation to get a thorough check-up.

Each branch in the US military has established different boards for medical evaluation. They check all soldiers to check if they are fit mentally and physically.

Suppose the soldiers do not have extreme symptoms associated with diabetes, like fainting during duty. In that case, they may qualify to serve in the military. However, medical boards have different rules for diabetes depending on the specific board and service members particular symptoms and severity level.

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What Foods Are Good To Eat To Lower Your Blood Sugar

Can You Join The Military With Diabetes? It

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Diabetes A Serious Health Problem

Glucose is essential to your health because it serves as a vital source of energy for the cells that make up your muscles and tissues.

Furthermore, it represents the main source of fuel for your brain.

Chronic diabetes conditions include type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that nearly 10 percent of the U.S. population has one type of diabetes.

It designates diabetes as one of the leading contributors of death in the country.

In 2017, over 83,000 people pass away due to complications related to diabetes.

The biggest difference between type 1 diabetes and type 2 diabetes is insulin.

Individuals diagnosed with type 1 diabetes need insulin to supplement their supply since the body is incapable of doing so.

Meanwhile, people with type 2 diabetes may be able to control their blood glucose level with a strict diet and regular exercise.

Diabetes can ultimately lead to heart disease, kidney failure, blindness, or amputation of the lower extremities.

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Medical Evaluation For Law Enforcement Officers With Diabetes

The medical evaluation includes looking at any chronic complications that might affect job performance or safety, including visual, neurological, kidney and cardiac complications.

The acute complications of hypoglycemia and hyperglycemia are also taken into account, and whether or not the person is taking insulin or other medications that may lower blood sugar. The evaluation looks at the risk for developing severe hyperglycemia and DKA .

The physician will look at how many episodes of severe hypoglycemia is the patient having per year, and if they have absence of the symptom called hypoglycemia unawareness. If the person with diabetes seeking to work in law enforcement has at least one severe hypoglycemic event in the last year requiring help from another person and has hypoglycemic unawareness, they are considered to be at a very high risk of another event over a span of 3 years.

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