May 6, 2004
TYPE II DIABETES AND AGENT ORANGE
This month, March 25th is AMERICAN DIABETES ALERT DAY. County Executive Mark Thomas and Veterans Director Cas Piglowski would like to remind all Chautauqua County veterans who served "in country" in Vietnam to get checked for Type 2 Diabetes. Sometimes, people with Type II diabetes don't notice any symptoms or the symptoms are experienced gradually. They include: blurry vision, cuts and sores that are slow to heal, itchy skin, yeast infections, increased thirst, dry mouth, need to urinate often and leg pain With type 2 diabetes, your body can't process blood sugar, called glucose, properly. It happens when insulin, the hormone that helps process this sugar, is unable to do its job. As a result, extra glucose is left in the blood.About 16 percent of the patients treated by VA have diabetes. And about 200,000 Vietnam veterans have type 2 diabetes. Agent Orange appears to raise diabetes risk. Family history of the disease, physical inactivity and obesity remain the most important risk factors. The benefits a veteran may receive will depend on the severity of his or her illness. Veterans may need to undergo a compensation and pension exam unless they have medical records detailing their illness. And veterans who were previously denied compensation should reapply to see if they are eligible. The list of diseases associated with Agent Orange continues to grow. Conditions service-connected for Vietnam veterans include chloracne (a skin disorder); porphyria cutanea tarda (a liver disorder); acute or subacute peripheral neuropathy (a nerve disorder); and certain cancers, including non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, soft tissue sarcoma, Hodgkin's disease, multiple myeloma, prostate cancer and respiratory cancers. Compensation Disability claims may be filed with the VA Regional Office through the Veterans Service Agency located at 319 Central Ave., Dunkirk, NY by calling 363-3630 or at 110 E. Fourth Street, Jamestown NY by calling 661-8255. SOUTH COUNTY OFFICE BUILDING, ROOM 215, 110 E 4t h ST.,JAMESTOWN , NY 14701, (716) 661-8255, FAX (716) 661-8257