Carrying an excess amount of belly fat increases a person's risk of developing type 2 diabetes. And though frequent high blood sugars alone can be detrimental to someone's health, it's oftentimes the associated complications of type 2 diabetes that take quite a toll on people's lives.

A recent study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine revealed that diabetes (both type 1 and type 2) complications can take up to eight years off a person's life. In particular, people with diabetes face an elevated risk of cardiovascular disease, according to the study. Researchers found that women with diabetes developed cardiovascular disease 8.4 years sooner than women without diabetes. Consequently, women aged 50 and older with diabetes lived 8.2 fewer years than people without the disease.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease that results in the permanent destruction of the insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas, an occurrence that happens for reasons unrelated to diet, exercise, or any other known factor. Type 2 diabetes, however, can many times be prevented or controlled with proper diet and regular exercise.

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I've done the walks for the past three years. In fact, I've done a few of them each year -- in Rhode Island, in D.C., and in Connecticut. I do what I can to help raise money and awareness in support of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), the one organization designed to help the estimated 1 million people in the U.S. living with type 1 diabetes. People like NBA star Adam Morrison. People like actress Mary Tyler Moore. People like my fiance.

This is why I felt incredibly disheartened by a story that appeared in yesterday's New York Times about the alleged misappropriation of funds by the JDRF. An internal audit led to the dismissal of two high-level employees with the organization after it was discovered that hundreds of thousands of dollars were unaccounted for. It appears as though these two employees created a scheme involving the use of fake receipts to justify phantom expenses.

Will this absence of funds bring the JDRF organization to its knees? That's extremely unlikely, considering the JDRF raises hundreds of millions of dollars annually to fund diabetes research. What it may do, however, is make people think twice about donating, or sponsoring a walker at an event, or even lending credibility to an organization that now walks the streets with a very big black eye. When it comes to raising money for a charity, people give with their hearts, not their minds. Thinking twice means thinking too much, and thinking too much all too often means thinking about other ways to part with money. And with the heart removed from their decision, a person who at one time may have been willing to help becomes just what I have: disheartened.

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Today, November 9th, is official Diabetes Blog Day, or D-Blog Day as the cool kids call it. In the ongoing effort to find a cure for diabetes, the blogosphere celebrates today as their own holiday of sorts.

Having previously been a blogger at the now retired TheDiabetesBlog.com, in addition to being engaged to a proud D-Blogger, I'm well aware of the enormous amount of support this community can provide. From patients sharing stories about their triumphs and setbacks, to parents of diabetic children who wish to simply know that they are not alone in their struggle, the diabetes blogosphere was created, albeit completely organically, to serve those very purposes.

If you're wondering where to find a list of diabetic blogs (D-Blogs), a good place to start is HERE at the Six Until Me Blogroll.

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Let's face it, disease is no laughing matter. It many times ushers in times of great distress and emotional tumult, leaving families and friends in its devastating wake. Still, there are some situations where one of the best coping mechanisms available is to simply allow yourself a good laugh. Call it the healing power of laughter, if you will.

That's the prevailing sentiment over at the popular humor website LOL Diabetes (www.loldiabetes.com). As an offshoot of the popular diabetes patient web blog Six Until Me (www.sixuntilme.com), this site allows readers to submit humorous photos, stories, videos, etc. that are related to diabetes and, most importantly, funny. And sometimes they can get REALLY funny.

The best part of this site is that it brings together people with diabetes -- and the loved ones of those with the disease -- and allows them to decompress a little bit. Let their guard down, even. Type-2 diabetes affects nearly 21 million people living in the United States alone, and close to 3 million people have type-1. These are big numbers; and the disease carries with it the possibility of additional physical complications. So, to have the ability to let off some steam and release some stress once and a while is certainly a good thing.

As far as I could tell, there are not any other LOL sites on the web that center on a specific disease. If you know of any, please let us know.

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