Diabetes Numbers Are

on the Rise

According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the number of people with diabetes has increased by 3 million in three years to a new high of 24 million. This means that almost eight percent of people in the U.S. have diabetes. Almost a quarter of people over 65 years old have diabetes. In addition, 57 million people have pre-diabetes, which means they are at very high risk for developing diabetes.

Are you or someone in your family at risk for type 2 diabetes? Your risk is higher if you are over 45 years of age, especially if you are over your recommended weight. You are also at higher risk if you are less than 45 years of age and have any one of these risk factors: physically inactive; have close relatives with diabetes; are a member of high-risk ethnic populations such as African American, Latino, Native American, Asian American, or Pacific Islander; have delivered a baby weighing over nine pounds; have high blood pressure, high cholesterol and/or triglycerides, polycystic ovary syndrome, tests indicating your body is not handling glucose well, or a history of vascular disease.

If you think you are at risk, ask your doctor or clinic for a fasting blood glucose test. Then, make sure you understand the results when they come back to you. Ask for a copy, and keep that copy somewhere so you can find it and compare future results.

If you are told your results indicate you do have pre-diabetes, is there anything you can do to reduce your risk of developing diabetes? The Diabetes Prevention Program showed the answer is “yes.” By walking 30 minutes daily for five days each week at a moderate speed and losing seven percent of your body weight, 58 percent of the people participating in this study did not develop diabetes.

If you know you have diabetes and you want to learn more about how to make sure you do the best you can by keeping your blood glucose in the range recommended by the American Diabetes Association (70 mg/dL to 130 mg/dL), ask your doctor or clinic for help finding diabetes self-management classes in your community. Doctors and other health care professionals can provide advice and medicines, but the person with diabetes has to manage it every day.

Texas AgriLife Extension Service has programs that can help you prevent and/or manage type 2 diabetes. Do Well Be Well with diabetes is a 5- week no cost diabetes education program that will be held at Fairfield ETMC in the conference room every Monday in the month of March from 3 to 5 p.m. starting on March 1st. To reserve your spot in this program please call your county extension agent, Sara Mote at (903)389- 3436. Everyone who has been diagnosed with diabetes, has a loved one or friend who has been diagnosed or just wants to learn more about living a healthier lifestyle with diabetes are welcome to join us.