THE SWEET LIFE

Knowing how to manage your blood sugar levels is one thing - accommodating diabetes is another. Bridget McNulty, a pioneering advocate for South Africans living with diabetes, shares her insights with us.

- CHRISTI NORTIER

As a writer and bookworm, Bridget McNulty read all she could about her Type 1 diabetes diagnosis. “Everything said I was now at greater risk of blindness, amputation, kidney failure, heart disease... and nowhere did it say you can live a perfectly normal, happy life with diabetes as long as you look after yourself. That's specifically why we started SweetLife in 2011,” shares Bridget, the founder of this online community for South Africans with diabetes.

SweetLife is a nonprofit organisation that aims to empower South Africans with diabetes by researching, creating and sharing information that is not only easy to understand, but also relevant to our circumstances. It's a largely online community - over 36 000 strong - that comes together on social media to provide mutual support and share their experiences. “Our goal is really to empower South Africans with diabetes to live healthy, happy lives, and we do that through education and community. There's so much wisdom in the community that we can share,” Bridget says. Drawing on decades of personal experience and this vast network, she shares key insights for living with diabetes that are relevant to anyone seeking a richer, more balanced relationship with food - no special “diabetes diet” in sight.

RETRAINING ALL YOUR TASTE BUDS