A Note from Manny: The Big Blue Test

November 14 is World Diabetes Day. On that day, at 14:00 hours (local time), thousands of people with diabetes will test their blood sugar, do 14 minutes of exercise, test again and share their results on this site, TuDiabetes.org, a community for people touched by Diabetes, or on Twitter.

The event is called The Big Blue Test because blue is the color associated with World Diabetes Day. It is based on a test-in activity that took place July 14, where more than a thousand people with diabetes tested their blood sugar at the same time and shared their results online. This time, the activity incorporates 14 minutes of physical activity to reinforce the importance of exercise.

"People with diabetes have to test their blood sugar and exercise routinely: it's like drinking water or brushing your teeth," said Manny Hernandez, co-founder of TuDiabetes and a person with diabetes himself. "We want people to take The Big Blue Test, to help us shed light on this chronic condition on World Diabetes Day."

Currently, more than 250 million people have diabetes worldwide. Millions more have diabetes but do not know it yet. People with diabetes need to monitor their blood sugar levels several times per day and exercise has to be a fundamental part of their diabetes management.

Participating in this event to raise diabetes awareness on November 14 is easy:

1. Test your blood sugar.
2. Run, jog, walk the dog or do anything you'd normally do as part of your exercise routine for 14 minutes.
3. Test your blood sugar again.
4. If you are on THIS site, please create a SharePost and post your test-in results. If you are a member of TuDiabetes click on the home page banner and share your readings and what physical activity you did. If you have a camera, you can also add a photo of your reading(s) or you exercising. Note:
5. If you have a Twitter account, post your readings on Twitter (use the #bigbluetest hashtag) and link back to: http://bigbluetest.org.

"We hope to see most readings posted at 14 hours (2 pm) local time, on November 14. If you are early or late, it's OK," said Hernandez. "What really matters is that you test your blood sugar often and that you exercise regularly. If you don't have diabetes, you can still take The Big Blue Test. Regardless, tell others to test, exercise and share on November 14."