Oh, come on.....really?

Reality TV is one of my guilty pleasures. I know that most of it is staged, but I still love watching people put into unnatural circumstances and seeing how they react. I'm most amazed when there is a million bucks on the line and people can't curb their more aggressive habits long enough to make friends with the other contestants. Last night I was watching Celebrity Apprentice and Brett Michaels is one of the "celebrities". When I heard he was going to be on I made a mental note. He's a lifelong diabetic and I was hoping they would show a diabetic being a "real diabetic".

Hollywood has done a ridiculous job of portraying diabetics. The most famous one was Julia Roberts in Steel Magnolias. Sure, sure, sure there are diabetics out there who have such severe insulin reactions that they have convulsions, but there is a much better way to deal with it than what the mother did in the movie. You don't pour orange juice into the mouth of someone who is convulsing. You either carry a shot designed to quickly administer sugar, or you carry a quick acting gel that can be squirted into your mouth that doesn't involve needing to swallow. Orange juice is just going to do what it did in the movie. Spill and make a mess.

Most of the time when the writer needs a "really desperate, down to the wire" condition, they throw in the token diabetic and create a situation where the person is separated from their insulin. Usually a kidnapping or intruder or something a long that line is involved. The thing that always gets me is that they always create a situation where the diabetic's insulin is unobtainable and then 2 hours later the person is in a really dire situation. It is so off base. Being without your insulin for a few hours isn't good, but it won't kill you. Or create vague and non-diagnosable conditions. Con-Air is a good example of that type of bad portrayal.

Panic Room is another movie where the unbelievable happened. The daughter in the movie was diabetic and she had the good fortune to have a device that she wore on her wrist, similar to a watch that automatically gave a constant reading of her blood sugar levels. No finger pricks, no blood, just a magic watch. Please. There is no such magic watch.

So, back to reality TV land and Brett Michaels. On the first episode he was in a situation where he had a full, busy day. His team had to do something or other in a diner to raise money for charity. He missed lunch and his blood sugar was low. They showed him off to the side guzzling a Coke. So far so good. It was spot on. The next few episodes progress reasonably well, and then last night was the kicker. Brett is upset because he gets a call from his daughter (9 years old) and they suspect she has diabetes so she is going to the Dr. to get tested. Brett is understandably upset and then proceeds to say that it will be a while before they get the results. It could be 2 days or 2 weeks. Whatever. While it is true that if your blood has to go a lab you might have to wait for the results, but no where in America does it need to take 2 weeks to find out if you are diabetic. There is a simple machine called a glucometer that every diabetic has. Some have several. They are inexpensive. Sometimes they show up in your mail absolutely free. The manufacturer knows that if you own their machine you have to purchase their test strips and that is where the real money can be made.

I'm guessing a big rock star like Mr. Michaels has many glucometers that someone can access and give his daughter a simple prick on her finger. She can have the results in 5 seconds. Not as in depth a report as blood coming back from the lab, but you either have it or you don't. Your blood sugar is either high or it isn't.

Sigh. It is insulting to have something a serious as diabetes be edited in such a sensational way. It also makes me wonder how many other things on TV are this far off base. Next you're going to tell me we really are in a recession.