Sugar Free Sox a sweet treat for diabetics

By: ALEXANDRA DeLUCA - For the North County Times | Saturday, September 30, 2006 6:20 PM PDT ∞

ESCONDIDO ---- Diabetics no longer have to sacrifice fashion for function when it comes to socks. Escondido resident Gary Meade, 34, has created Sugar Free Sox, a line of fashionable socks designed especially for people with diabetes.

The nonbinding, super-stretchable, anti-bacterial socks promote circulation and help prevent other foot ailments that diabetics are prone to. They come in an array of colors and styles.

"We're bridging a concept that was in the health world and we're bringing it into the fashion world," Meade said.

According to the American Diabetes Association, diabetics are more likely than the general population to develop foot problems because diabetes causes blood vessels of the feet and legs to harden and narrow, reducing circulation. Poor circulation can make feet less able to fight infection and to heal, which can lead to serious complications such as neuropathy (nerve damage), foot ulcers and even amputation. To help prevent these problems, doctors recommend that diabetics wear shoes and socks every day.

The inspiration for Sugar Free Sox was Meade's mother, who is diabetic. When she took off her socks at the end of a long work day, she had deep sock rings around her calves. Seeking something less constrictive, she set out to find diabetic socks, but had a hard time finding any in retail stores, and the ones she eventually found were far from fashionable.

"I saw a need there," said Meade, who said he came up with the idea for Sugar Free Sox about a year ago.

Meade, who once supervised 70 employees at an entertainment service company, left the corporate world behind when he moved his family from Los Angeles to Escondido in 2001 to provide a better life for them.

"I didn't want to go back to the corporate world," he said. "I was looking for a product I could be passionate about ---- this was it."

It took Meade about a year to develop the socks, which are manufactured in Turkey and are 80 percent cotton woven with nylon and spandex.

"We had to get the percentages just right," Meade said.

Sugar Free Sox are more stretchable than regular socks and feature a nonbinding top, which eliminates sock rings and enhances circulation. Seamless toes prevent blisters and irritation, and an anti-microbial coating helps prevent athlete's foot and odor.

Although there are other diabetic socks on the market, Meade said Sugar Free Sox stand out because they don't look like, well, diabetic socks.

"It looks like a normal sock that you'd buy at a department store," said Meade, who said that typical diabetic socks have a meshlike material and only come in white and, occasionally, black.

Sugar Free Sox come in 12 separate styles and colors for both men and women.

They sell for $9.99 per pair, or $26 for three pairs.

"We have a diabetic label on them, but half the people who buy them are not diabetic," Meade said. "It's for anybody who is sitting behind a computer every day. This sock is good for everyone."

Meade recently added compression hosiery to his line of Sugar Free Sox, which are gender neutral and come in four colors. Meade said the compression hose, which cost $12.99 per pair, help prevent varicose veins and blood clots and are ideal for travelers, pregnant women and people who stand for long periods of time, such as waitresses and waiters.

Although anyone can benefit from Sugar Free Sox, Meade's primary focus is diabetics.

"This is a niche market now, but in the future, I think it will become more popular as people become more health-conscious," Meade said.

Unfortunately, Meade's target audience is expanding every day: The American Diabetes Association estimates that more than 20.8 million Americans, or 7 percent of the population, have diabetes, and that 41 million Americans have pre-diabetes, blood glucose levels that are higher than normal. Additionally, as the 70 million members of the baby-boomer generation enter their 50s and 60s, their risk for developing diabetes increases.

"I'm really hoping this product gets popular," Meade said. "A lot of diabetics don't realize there is a thing called a diabetic sock. They don't realize how important it can be."

Meade said that Sugar Free Sox have made a "real difference" for his mother, and that he has received several thank you notes from customers, such as a 101-year-old woman from Escondido whose edema was greatly relieved by Sugar Free Sox compression hosiery.

"Her daughter was so thrilled she that she wrote a note," Meade said. "It's very gratifying."

Meade said it is not uncommon for him to receive orders for dozens of pairs of socks as people replace their entire sock drawer with Sugar Free Sox.

"Once people discover it, people often order 30 pairs at a time," Meade said. "I love seeing that, too."

Meade sells Sugar Free Sox on his Web site, www.sugarfreesox.com, and at local stores such as The Foot Comfort Store in Vista and Happy Feet at the Westfield North County shopping mall in Escondido. Although he would like to expand to department stores eventually, Meade said that he prefers to sell his products at boutique stores where sales associates can explain the benefits of the socks to consumers.

"They understand the product, and they understand the need," Meade said.

Meade said that he has gotten lots of positive feedback about the name Sugar Free Sox from retailers and from people at trade expos.

"Retailers like it because when people see it, they laugh or get curious about it," Meade said. "It makes people think. They won't forget it."

Meade said he plans to develop more fashionable, functional items in the future.

"I'm going to continue to expand the line as time goes on," Meade said. "I'm really excited about this."

For more information on Sugar Free Sox, call (760) 739-9003 or visit www.sugarfreesox.com.

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