Women's Health Wednesday: Dr. Hetal Shah Shares Expert Tips for Diabetes Awareness Month
“Diabetes tends to be a silent disease, until it is not. For women especially, I would emphasize that they should not let other priorities get in the way of their self-care and diabetes management.” Today’s woman dreamer, Dr. Hetal Shah is currently faculty at the Joslin Diabetes Center and Harvard Medical School, and she has a portfolio of 25+ publications under her belt. As we wrap up Diabetes Awareness Month, she shares her expert tips for women on managing their diabetes. She also notes future diabetes research she is most excited about such as diabetes in the context of aging, the needs of Asian American diabetics in particular, and role of eastern Holistic Medicine. A must read - check out Hetal’s story for Women’s Health Wednesday!
1. Tell us your story. You are an epidemiologist with over 10 years of experience, and currently part of the faculty at Harvard Medical School What inspired your interest in healthcare?
As a child of Africa and Asia, many stories live in me, having been blessed with a multi-cultural upbringing and diverse exposures. At my core, it’s been a journey of uncovering the mysteries of life, and ever since my first captivating visual of cells under the microscope, I thought Science was the way. Plus, with parental-instilled values of being helpful to society, I completed medical school in India, an enriching and humbling experience. A BU scholarship brought me to Boston, and a need to make a difference in the field of diabetes, given it affects many loved ones, led me to a post-doc at Joslin, and eventually, a Harvard faculty position.
2. As November is Diabetes Awareness Month, what are your top tips to women in managing their diabetes?
Diabetes tends to be a silent disease, until it is not. So of course, maintaining good control of blood sugars is of utmost importance. This requires a balanced life - healthy diet and lifestyle routines, taking medications on time, regular check-ups, and decreasing stress. For women especially, I would emphasize that they should not let other priorities get in the way of their self-care and diabetes management. Your health is your family’s wealth. That said, it’s also okay to indulge once in a while if you’re maintaining overall good control of your blood sugars, remember to be kind to yourself and not overly self-critical too.
3. There is a lot of research and development happening in the diabetes space. Is there any research you are particularly interested in, as we think about the future of treating diabetes?
Yes, diabetes is a multi-faceted disease requiring multi-pronged approaches. We are investigating biomarkers to develop personalized approaches to managing diabetes and gain insights into underlying mechanisms (and better drug targets) of diabetic complications (eg. heart, kidney, eye). As importance of gut health is increasingly recognized, we’re also examining the interplay of diet, gut microbiome and metabolic factors. I’m also studying diabetes in the context of aging, as improved life span now brings new challenges of age-related complications such as Alzheimer’s dementia. Further, we are venturing into disparity research, for example, examining the needs of Asian Americans with diabetes, who have different risk factors and socio-cultural contexts that remain understudied. Outside my realm of expertise, I feel that more systems-based approaches (eg. improved access to healthy food) are also needed, and understanding the confluence of planetary and individual health (eg. air pollution affecting diabetes). There also needs to be a greater dialogue between Western medicine and the more holistic Eastern traditions (eg. Yoga, Ayurveda, TCM) –perhaps more integrative approaches may better help people with diabetes.
4. You are certainly a busy woman. After a long work day, how do you like to relax and unwind?
I love music (especially old songs and ghazals), dance, Bollywood movies, philosophical and creative pursuits. Essentially, I am a writer (I write papers and grants for my profession!), and in my free time I love writing prose & poetry. I enjoy exploring languages by writing shaayari in Hindi/Urdu, and bringing these poems to life by performing at open mics.
Thank you Hetal for sharing your story with us. We are excited to have you in our global women’s network!
Bio: Dr. Hetal Shah, MBBS, MPH, is currently faculty at Joslin Diabetes Center & Harvard Medical School. Dr. Shah received her medical degree from Manipal University, India, and her Master of Public Health in Epidemiology from Boston University School of Public Health. Subsequently, she completed her post-doctoral research training as a genetic epidemiologist at Joslin, where she studied genetics of diabetic complications, tools that could be leveraged for personalized medicine in type 2 diabetes. Dr. Shah is now the lead epidemiologist of the Joslin 50-year Medalist Study, a landmark study of individuals with 50+ years of type 1 diabetes that aims to find protective factors against vascular complications in these individuals. Dr. Shah has a portfolio of 25+ publications in leading diabetes journals and several abstract presentations at key conferences. She also serves as a peer reviewer for many journals, has chaired sessions at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes (EASD) conferences, and teaches courses at the Harvard School of Public Health.
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