“He’s strapped to my hip,” Ray Engelbertink, owner of Canadian Tire here, said yesterday morning of his close association with his newest companion–a teddy bear he must carry with him everywhere and administer insulin shots to twice daily for a week.
Engelbertink was among 11 local participants who yesterday took on the lifestyle of a Type I diabetic for one week as part of the “Celebrity Challenge” organized by the Canadian Diabetes Association.
Other “celebrities” include David Schwartz, Heather Johnson, Eric Alcock, Linda Hamilton, Linda Plumridge, Phyllis Johnson, Mary Martinson, Mike Scott, Robin Wright, and Sherri Kaun.
Up until Nov. 3, each of the participants is required to follow a strict diabetes management plan that includes a regiment of diet, exercise, blood sugar monitoring, and the administration of insulin shots (distilled water) to a teddy bear using a real syringe.
The participants also must record their progress daily and rate their achievements using a point system. A maximum of six points can be gained for eating each meal and snack on time while each cigarette pack used means a deduction of three points.
A trophy will be awarded to the participant with the highest score during an awards supper slated Nov. 4 at the Ukrainian Hall.
“The teddy bear represents diabetes because if you are a diabetic, you take it with you everywhere you go,” George Bartlett, co-ordinator of the program and a member of the local branch of the CDA, said yesterday.
“The participants were all thrilled and delighted to take part in the challenge [and] when they are finished, they will know more about diabetes than most ever wanted to,” he added.
Just hours into the program, Engelbertink already had a greater appreciation for the life of a person with diabetes–especially after eating his first breakfast.
“It’s a pretty strict diet,” he noted, adding he started off the morning with cereal, milk, and fruit. “I do like my bacon and eggs, within reason, and I’d probably have had more juice or liquids.
“And I’m glad it’s the bear getting the shot and not me,” he added.
“I would have had a great big glass of juice,” noted Schwartz, a pharmacist at Gagné’s Pharmacy here. “But that’s too much sugar [and] I would have had lots of peanut butter.
“It gives you a unique perspective,” he added. “I had to poke my own finger [for blood]. That’s the most invasive part of it all.”
Martinson, co-owner of Mar-Te Sporting Goods, expected adhering to regular mealtimes would be her greatest challenge.
“I suppose [mealtime] is a little bit of concern for me because I’m usually busy bobbing around my staff’s schedule of taking lunch and I don’t always get a set lunch time,” she explained.
Meanwhile, with Hallowe’en looming on the horizon, Martinson is faced with the additional challenge of staying away from those “high in sugar” treats.
“Hallowe’en will be torture!” she admitted. “I’m a binger when it comes to candy and if it’s in the house, I eat it.
“I’ll have to hide it all until it’s time to give it out,” she chuckled.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
