Covid and Diabetes

COVID-19 is a respiratory illness caused by a new virus. It is not a bacteria. Symptoms include fever, coughing, sore throat and shortness of breath. The virus can spread from person to person, but good hygiene can prevent infection.

As we have seen over the past 18 months, mask wearing when you can't social distance, and hand washing with sanitiser are now part of our lives, and good for hygiene anyway.

Diabetes Australia advises:

Australia’s peak diabetes organisations are encouraging all Australian adults with diabetes to get vaccinated against COVID-19 as soon as the vaccine is available to them.

The COVID-19 vaccinations are safe and have been approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration’s (TGA) rigorous testing process. Both vaccines currently approved by the TGA (AstraZeneca and Pfizer) are suitable for use in adults living with diabetes.

We recommend all adults with diabetes get vaccinated against COVID-19. There is clear evidence that people with diabetes are at higher risk of serious illness if they get COVID-19.

Members of our Diabetes Kitchen team (who are managing various types of diabetes) have recently been contacted by their GP's advising that they can now book into their clinic for the vaccination. 

Contact your GP if you haven't received this information from them yet. There is likely to be a long wait list but just get yourself booked in.

Here are some things to bear in mind (yes, some people have been spreading these round!)

- drinking alcohol does not cause or prevent covid.

- nor does eating  garlic or hot peppers!

- heat and humidity and cold weather or snow, does not cause or prevent covid.

- anitbiotics don't prevent covid (it's a virus, not bacterial)

- flu vaccines don't prevent covid

- hand dryers don't prevent covid

- mozzie bites and flies don't spread covid.

- thermal scanners detect fever, not COVID

Most people recover from COVID-19 so don't be frightened, just go and get your vaccine and keep practising good hygiene.