Diabetes Community Sites, FaceBook Groups and Forums

Facebook is a free social networking site where users can join groups. In these groups, members can post messages, interact with others or find relevant content. A few of the numerous Diabetes groups:

DIABETES

• Description: "The reason why I'm given you this information is because I've got the condition myself. I did not know i had it until i went for a medical for a job, the nurse told me I had to much sugar in my urine..so I did not pass. I went to my GP and after a few tests she told me I had the condition, now I'm doing my best to control it."
• Content: >155 members.

Diabetes

• Description: "Gather the diabetic army.."
• Content: >200 members, >90 wall posts, several discussions.

Diabetes UK

• Description: A Facebook group dedicated to diabetes awareness.
• Content: >5000 fans, photos, videos, notes, links and discussions.

Click here to see other diabetes-related Facebook groups.

Children with Diabetes

• Description: "The mission of Children with Diabetes, Inc. is to promote understanding of the care and treatment of diabetes, especially in children; to increase awareness of the need for unrestricted diabetes care for children at school and daycare; to support families living with diabetes; and to promote understanding of research into a cure. "
• Content: Forums, care suggestions and you can also ask the medical team.
• Quality: Accredited by HONcode.

Diabetes Handprint

• Description: "At OneTouch®, we believe that when we all speak together, our voice will be heard. That’s why, inspired by The Word in Your Hand™ Project found on Tudiabetes.com®, we created the Global Diabetes Handprint. "
• Content: You can share your story or read others.
• Quality: Courtesy of LifeScan.

Diabetic Connect

• Description: "We make it easy to start conversations, share recipes, ask questions about diabetic products, and much more. Our hope is to give you the support and information you need to live a long healthy life with diabetes."
• Content: Discussions, blogs, events, product reviews.
• Quality: Member of the Alliance Health Community.

dLife

• Description: "Welcome to the leading online diabetes resource. dLife is THE place for all aspects of your diabetes lifestyle, offering information and community support for type 1 diabetes, type 2 diabetes, and caregivers. From questions about blood sugar to delicious diabetic recipes, we're here to help. "
• Content: Blogs, podcasts, recipes, questions and answers, forums, TV and news.
• Quality: Accredited by HONcode.

Juvenation - A Type 1 Diabetes community

• Description: "DRF is a leader in setting the agenda for diabetes research worldwide, and is the largest charitable funder and advocate of type 1 research. The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research."
• Content: Blogs, groups, videos and forums.
• Quality: Since its founding in 1970 by parents of children with type 1 diabetes, JDRF has awarded more than $1.3 billion to diabetes research, including more than $156 million in FY2008. In FY2008, the Foundation funded more than 1,000 centers, grants in laboratories, hospitals, and industry, and fellowships in 22 countries.

Living out Loud with Diabetes

• Description: "A Positive, Fun, Informative Community for Diabetics and those that Love 'em"
• Content: Discussions, events, forums, photos and videos.
• Quality: A free-to-use forum and community site.

MedHelp

• Description: "The MedHelp site connects people with the leading medical experts and others who have similar experiences. Today, MedHelp empowers over 5.5 million people each month to take control over their health and find answers to their medical questions. MedHelp has over 14 years of accumulated information from doctors and other patients across hundreds of conditions. "
• Content: Medical dictionary, posts, drug information, journal entries and many more.
• Quality: Accredited by HONcode.

My Food Advisor

• Description: It helps you learn what you can it as a diabetic patient.
• Content: You can explore foods or search recipes.
• Quality: Managed by the American Diabetes Association

My Life - for young people with diabetes

• Description: A series of community sites providing children and teenagers with information on diabetes management.
• Content: Stories, guides and suggestions.
• Quality: The project of Diabetes UK.

SugarStats

• Description: "SugarStats gives you a simple and easy-to-use interface to input and access your data from home, school, work, when you're on the road or just about anywhere at all. All you need is a web browser and the desire to take control of your diabetes."
• Content: Graphs and Trends, Twitter Integration, Mobile Edition.

TuDiabetes

• Description: Today, TuDiabetes.com® is an Online Community where the members help each other out, educate ourselves and share the steps we take every day to stay healthy while living with this very serious condition."
• Content: >7000 members, blogs, forums, events and news.
• Quality: It is run by the Diabetes Hands Foundation.

Voices of Diabetes

• Description: "Join the Voices of Diabetes community where people living with diabetes, loved ones, and diabetes educators all share their perspectives on coping with diabetes. Get insight on self-care topics ranging from meal planning tips to ideas for staying active. Discover a vibrant community or submit and share your own strategies for managing diabetes. "
• Content: Tips about how to manage your diabetes.
• Quality: Novo Nordisk has a strategic alliance with the Mayo Clinic to improve the management of diabetes.

Kerri Morrone Sparling at Sixuntilme.com participated in the Diabetes 365 project.

Over the last 366 days (leap year added the extra challenge), I've lived my life with my camera at the ready, snapping photos of everything from CGM sensors to snacks ... and the moments in between. I thought that the Diabetes 365 project would make me feel like diabetes is an overwhelming facet of my life, but instead I've seen that diabetes truly does not define any of us. We can grab pictures of our meters and our pump sites, but there's also so much LIFE going on between all these moments of diabetes management.

Or check the Flickr photoset out.